LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) – The NFL suspended Chicago defensive lineman Jeremiah Ratliff without pay for the first three games of the season Monday, saying he violated its substance-abuse policy.
Ratliff will miss games against the Packers, Cardinals and Seahawks before he is eligible to return to the active roster in time for the Oct. 4 game against Oakland. He is eligible to participate in all preseason practices and games, including Saturday’s game at Cincinnati.
Ratliff said he anticipated the suspension for a 2013 drunken-driving incident and will move on without appealing to the league.
“There’s a lot of things I could be doing to help myself, help the team,” Ratliff said. “That’s what I’m going to focus on. This was about what, two, three years ago? That’s all behind me.”
Ratliff was given one year of probation and fined after pleading guilty to a January 2013 DWI charge after crashing a pickup truck into an 18-wheeler. He tested at a blood-alcohol level of 0.16, more than twice the legal limit, according to police. At the time, he played for the Dallas Cowboys.