NFL teams
Adam Schefter, ESPN Senior Writer 8y

Cowboys face fine of at least $250K for having three suspended players

NFL, Dallas Cowboys

With at least three players suspended for part of the 2016 season, the Dallas Cowboys will be subject to a fine in the range of $250,000, based on last year's club remittance policy.

The league still is formulating this year's fine schedule, which is based on the number of players suspended on a single team. Last year, any team with three players suspended -- the position the Cowboys are in this year with linebacker Rolando McClain and defensive ends DeMarcus Lawrence and Randy Gregory -- had to pay a fine up to $250,000.

The fines are not expected to decrease this season under the new schedule.

McClain, Lawrence and Gregory were suspended for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. McClain will miss the season's first 10 games and Lawrence will miss the first four. Gregory also received a four-game ban but now faces a longer suspension after another violation, according to multiple sources.

The club remittance policy was created to hold teams accountable for acquiring players who have violated various NFL policies, by fining the teams an amount that equals up to 25 percent of the worth of the suspended players' salaries.

According to the policy: "When a player is suspended without pay for a violation of the Personal Conduct Policy, Policy and Program on Substances of Abuse or Policy on Performance-Enhancing Substances, the club that employed the player at the time of the violation will be required to remit to the Management Council a portion of the player's salary that is deemed forfeited by virtue of his suspension. The collected funds will be used to support the steroid and drug policies, the Player Care Foundation, and other research and player engagement programs."

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