Browner’s reinstatement includes four-game ban
Mar 5, 2014, 2:11 PM | Updated: 2:44 pm
By Brady Henderson
Brandon Browner’s reinstatement comes with some conditions, including a four-game suspension to begin the 2014 season.
The NFL and its players association announced their agreement on Wednesday, a day after the former Seahawks cornerback wrote on his Twitter account that he had been reinstated from his indefinite suspension.
Here’s the deal: Browner, an unrestricted free agent, is free to sign with any team beginning March 11 and is eligible to participate in offseason activities and play in preseason games. If he complies with the terms of the league’s substance-abuse policy, he’ll be fully reinstated after serving a four-game suspension to start the regular season. He must also forfeit an additional four weeks of pay.
Browner, a starter for the Seahawks the past three seasons, was suspended indefinitely in December for a violation of the league’s substance-abuse policy after reportedly testing positive for marijuana. He missed Seattle’s last two regular-season games and was ineligible for the postseason due to the suspension.
The agreement on his reinstatement came as his representatives were prepared to file a lawsuit challenging the validity of his suspension, arguing that Browner shouldn’t have been penalized for missing tests while he wasn’t employed in the NFL.
Follow Brady Henderson on Twitter @BradyHenderson.