(Reuters) – Denver Broncos linebacker Joe Mays has been banned one game and fined $50,000 for a hit to the head that left Houston Texans quarterback Matt Schaub without part of his ear, the National Football League (NFL) said on Tuesday.
Mays, who received a roughing-the-passer penalty for his hit during the third quarter of Sunday’s game, is the latest player to be disciplined as part of the NFL’s efforts to eliminate such hits from the game.
Schaub, who left the game for one play with a bloody left ear after Mays went helmet-first into his jaw area, threw for 290 yards and four touchdowns in the Texans’ 31-25 victory.
Mays has three days to appeal the ruling.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes)
