NFL denies Kareem Jackson appeal; will serve full suspension

This time, the appeal did not go well for Kareem Jackson.

The NFL denied his attempt to get the four-game suspension reduced, meaning he will serve the entirety of the punishment and not be eligible to play again until the Broncos’ Christmas Eve game against the New England Patriots.

Jackson will thus miss a stretch of the season that appears to be the most important in determining the Broncos’ fate as they try to return to the playoffs after a seven-year absence. Denver faces Cleveland, Houston, the Los Angeles Chargers and Detroit over the next four weeks. Cleveland and Houston are squarely in the wild-card race in which the Broncos now find themselves, while the Chargers sit on the fringe after some recent losses. Detroit, meanwhile, is the best team remaining on the Broncos’ schedule, with an 8-2 record that is the NFL’s second-best.

Early on Tuesday, Jackson shared a video of former Patriots and Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady opining about the state of the sport, including that rules changes have allowed “bad habits” to seep into the sport.

Kareem Jackson, of course, ran afoul of NFL regulations regarding hits — particularly those involving lowering the helmet. And even though he was not penalized for his Sunday-night hit on Josh Dobbs, the NFL saw fit to issue him a four-game punishment for the hit, which came just three snaps into his return from a two-game suspension.

Jackson’s previous suspension was initially four games, but NFL hearing officer Derrick Brooks halved it upon Jackson’s Oct. 24 appeal.

But this time, no such grace came Jackson’s way.

If P.J. Locke is healthy, he is expected to start in Jackson’s place Sunday against the Browns. If not, the Broncos will likely turn to either second-year safety Delarrin Turner-Yell or rookie JL Skinner. Turner-Yell started two games earlier this season. Skinner made his regular-season debut Sunday night, working on special teams.

Related

Report: Broncos linebacker broke his leg during win against FalconsBroncos get impact performances from a pair of rookies who leave a big impression‘You pee, you grab a banana’ — Sean Payton pulls back the curtain on play-callingSean Payton going viral after calling out Falcons fans during preseason openerSean Payton says Stidham had ‘resiliency’ in nice game after last season’s dudStidham makes statement early in Broncos’ backup QB derby