NFL suspends free-agent DE 17 weeks for PED violation

Amani Bledsoe began last season on the shelf with a six-game PED suspension. The young defensive end will face a stiffer penalty this year. The NFL suspended Bledsoe for this season’s first 17 weeks, per Field Yates of ESPN.com.

The lengthy duration here stems from another PED policy violation, Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL.com report. While the 2020 CBA lightened punishments for recreational drugs, PED penalties obviously remain in place. Bledsoe is a free agent; this second violation will make his path back to a roster rather difficult.

A former Titans and Bengals defensive end, Bledsoe did not see any game action last season. But he did stick around via a reserve/futures contract with the Falcons. But Atlanta waived Bledsoe last month.

This latest ban threatens Bledsoe’s career, seeing as he was an undrafted free agent who has played sparingly. The Oklahoma alum has made six career starts — four of them coming with the Bengals in 2020 — and caught on with Atlanta’s practice squad last November. Bledsoe, 25, did enough to warrant a futures deal. But it is hard to envision a team picking him up as a free agent this year.

The Titans signed Bledsoe as a UDFA in 2019. He had worked as a contributor on a few late-2010s Sooner defensive lines. The 6-foot-4 defender has yet to record a sack as a pro.