NFL suspends Sam Franklin Jr.; AP reports he denies spitting allegation

The NFL has suspended Buffalo Bills defensive back Sam Franklin Jr. for one game without pay after determining that he spit at a Las Vegas opponent during Sunday's game. Franklin denies the allegation and intends to appeal, according to Associated Press reporting Wednesday.

AP's John Wawrow attributed the denial and appeal plan to a person familiar with discussions about the punishment who spoke anonymously because those discussions were private. That is a reported challenge to the league's account, not an announced appeal decision.

Buffalo is on its bye this week. The league says the suspension begins October 26 and covers the November 1 game against Baltimore, with Franklin eligible to return to the active roster November 2. Those are the announced dates unless the disciplinary process changes them. A week without a game does not absorb the one-game penalty.

Franklin's suspension follows the separate one-game penalty announced Monday for safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson. In the Bills' October 19 account of that earlier case, coach Joe Brady called Gardner-Johnson's conduct unacceptable and said it had been addressed with the team. Those remarks concerned Gardner-Johnson. They should not be read as Franklin admitting the league's allegation.

The practical problem for Buffalo reaches beyond the final score of its 33-30 win at Las Vegas. The next game could require adjustments in both the secondary and special teams. The club has to prepare for the announced absences while the available appeal process runs. Franklin's intention to challenge his penalty belongs in the report; it is not yet a reason to put him back in the November 1 lineup.