CINCINNATI -- The NFL has suspended Bengals cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones for the 2017 opener after videos showed him repeatedly cursing a police officer and resisting jailers following a January arrest.
WATCH the videos above and below.
Jones received the one-game suspension for violating the league's Personal Conduct Policy. Jones will be docked one game's pay - $425,000 - from his $6.8 million salary in 2017. That would raise Jones' total of NFL fines and lost wages to almost $2.2 million over his career, according to spotrac. He had four previous fines for more than $1.7 million, according to the website.
In a letter to Jones, the NFL said it considered "the extensive video documentation of the tone, tenor and nature of your interactions with law enforcement at the site of your arrest, during transportation to the jail and during the booking process," according to James Palmer of NFL Network. "Your post-arrest words and actions reflected poorly on you and your family, the Cincinnati Bengals football club and the NFL."
Jones can appeal.
The Bengals issued this statement Friday afternoon:
“The Bengals anticipated this result and are glad to finally put the matter behind us. Our focus is on getting ready for the upcoming season. Adam will participate in training camp and we are counting on him to help our team when he returns from suspension.”
Jones, 33, was charged with assault, disorderly conduct and obstructing official business following a Jan. 3 incident outside the Millennium Hotel downtown. The arresting officer's cruiser-cam video showed Jones in the back seat verbally abusing the officer, telling him "I hope you die tomorrow" and repeatedly cursing him with the n-word.
WARNING: The video below contains explicit language which some readers may find offensive.
Police were called after Jones pushed and poked a security guard in the eye, according to court records. Jones refused to enter a police cruiser by pulling away, kicking and head-butting as he was being arrested, records state. He also was charged with spitting on a nurse at the Justice Center.
Security footage at the Justice Center showed the Bengal lunging at a group of jailers (at about 00:30 in the video below) and the moment when he was reported to have spat on a nurse during intake (at about 4:30).
WATCH the jail video (Note: There is no sound):
The Justice Center video doesn’t show the reported spitting because a deputy walked in front of Jones at the moment the incident is thought to have occurred. The deputies around Jones put him in a restraint chair and put a surgical-style mask over his mouth after he made a sudden movement in the nurse’s direction.
Jones could have faced felony assault for spitting on the woman, but Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters dropped the felony charge after Jones entered alcohol and anger management treatment. Jones pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor charge of obstructing official business, saying "the video truly is not a representation of me." Two other misdemeanors were dropped.
WATCH Jones' statement outside the courtroom:
Bengals owner Mike Brown defended Jones and resisted public pressure to release him.
It was the 10th time Jones has been arrested since joining the NFL and the fourth time since he came to the Bengals in 2010, according to NFLArrest.com. In 2010, Jones went on trial after being accused of punching a woman who dumped a beer on him at a bar, A judge found not guilty of assault. In 2013, he paid a $130 fine for disorderly conduct after police pulled over a car in which he was riding and arrested the driver for DUI.
In May, Jones posted an expletive-filled video online after police said he was involved in a car crash. The video, obtained by TMZ, shows the scene of the crash and Jones’ damaged Rolls-Royce. Jones said if it weren't for his anger management classes he would "smack the s--t out of a n---."
