The Buffalo Bills' secondary won't be as depleted in Week 8 as they might have expected.
Sam Franklin Jr.'s suspension for allegedly spitting at an opponent during the Bills' Week 6 win over the Las Vegas Raiders has been overturned following his appeal. Matt Signora, the NFL's senior vice president of football and international communications, announced on Friday, Oct. 23 that a hearing officer had reduced Franklin's punishment from a suspension to a fine.
"Hearing officer James Thrash, jointly appointed by the NFL and the NFLPA, has reduced the discipline of Sam Franklin from a one-game suspension to a fine of $14,926 for unsportsmanlike conduct," Signora wrote on social media site X.
C.J. GARDNER-JOHNSON: Suspended Bills player apologizes after ejection for spitting on Raiders star
Prior to his overturned suspension, Franklin was set to be the second Bills player suspended for spitting at an opponent during Buffalo's Week 6 game. Teammate and fellow defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson was ejected from the matchup and suspended for the Bills' next game in Week 8 after spitting at Raiders tight end Brock Bowers. Gardner-Johnson has since apologized.
According to the NFL's initial version of events, Franklin spit at an opponent after Las Vegas kicked an extra point with 1 minute and 32 seconds left in the fourth quarter. As a violation of the NFL's official rules, the defensive back was set to be suspended from Monday, Oct. 26 to Monday, Nov. 2 – the week leading up to and including the Bills' next game after their Week 7 bye.
After his appeal and a further review of the incident, Franklin will pay a fine for unsportsmanlike conduct instead of serving his suspension. Conversely, Gardner-Johnson remains suspended for Week 8.
Franklin, who signed a three-year, $7.5 million extension in February, is a special teams captain for Buffalo. He has appeared in all six games this season, exclusively on special teams. Prior to joining the Bills last year, he spent the first five years of his career with the Carolina Panthers.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NFL rescinds Buffalo Bills defender's one-game spitting suspension