NFL’s spitting shame escalates as a second player is banned for latest disgusting on-field incident
A second Buffalo Bills player has been suspended for spitting at an opponent during their heated game against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.
On Wednesday morning, it was announced safety Sam Franklin Jr. has been suspended without pay for one game for spitting at an opponent during the fourth quarter of his team’s 33-30 win at Allegiant Stadium.
It comes two days after his teammate C.J. Gardner-Johnson was also suspended for one game without pay after he was caught on camera spitting at Raiders players in the same game.
The incident involving Franklin Jr. is alleged to have occurred with 1:32 left in the fourth quarter after the Raiders’ successful extra point attempt.
Video shows Franklin Jr. take a shot below the belt from Raiders star DJ Glaze. The Bills star can be seen confronting Glaze but it is unclear whether or not he spat at him.
Franklin Jr., who denies the allegation and is appealing the suspension, will miss the team’s AFC showdown with the Baltimore Ravens on November 1. The Bills are on their bye this week.
Sam Franklin Jr. is the second Buffalo Bills player to be suspended for spitting at an opponent
The incident is alleged to have occurred with 1:32 left in the fourth quarter with DJ Glaze
The 30-year-old signed for the Carolina Panthers in 2020 as an undrafted free agent and spent five seasons in Charlotte. After a brief spell with the Denver Broncos in the offseason of 2025, he joined the Bills and has played 23 games for Buffalo.
Gardner-Johnson was ejected late in the second quarter for unsportsmanlike conduct following an exchange with a group of Raiders players, including tight end Brock Bowers.
In issuing the suspension, the league cited its rule applying to ‘any act which is contrary to the generally understood principles of sportsmanship.’
Gardner-Johnson apologized to his teammates immediately following Buffalo´s 33-30 win, and has since posted a note on social media apologizing to fans.
‘I owe my teammates an apology and to be a man about it,’ Gardner-Johnson said following the game.
‘You got to understand that as a grown man you can´t be doing (stuff) like that in a game,’ he added. ‘As a vet, I´ll be better. I´ll take my consequences as it is, handle it like a man and move on.’
The ejection also prompted a reaction from San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk, who alleged on social media that Gardner-Johnson had spit on him previously.
‘This is the least surprising thing ever,’ Juszczyk posted, adding that Gardner-Johnson ‘spit on me last year when we beat Chicago.’
Bills safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson has also been suspended for spitting at a Raiders rival
The Bills safety was seen spitting in the direction of Brock Bowers during a confrontation
Coach Joe Brady referred to Gardner-Johnson’s spitting act as being ‘inexcusable,’ and said he’s discussed the matter privately with the player.
‘It can’t happen. That’s not what we’re about. That’s not what the game of football is about, and he knows that,’ Brady said.
Gardner-Johnson arrived in Buffalo with an established reputation of being a noted trash-talker and as someone who has on occasion crossed the line with illegal hits.
‘I don’t need a roster of everybody being the same person,’ Brady said. ‘Obviously, he crossed the line yesterday and that can’t happen. It won’t happen again. Personality-wise, I’m not afraid to have people who are going to try to toe the line in everything they do.’
