With Sean Payton being suspended for the year, he becomes the first ever coach in NFL history to be suspended for any reason. How does Payton's unexpected vacation compare to the bans enforced by the other major American sports? We are only including "on-field" incidents, so off the field events won't be added. Let's take a look.

Sports' Longest On-Field Suspensions Slideshow

 

Sean Payton (2012 Season)

Payton's been handed one of the most severe suspensions of all time in all of sports for his role in the Saints' bounty scandal, and for lying to the commissioner's office when told to cease the bounties. His suspension, along with other suspensions and penalties handed out, will likely severely impact the future of the franchise, at a time when New Orleans' star, Drew Brees, is on the back end of a hall of fame career. Ouch.

 

Pete Rose (Forever)

Pete Rose was accused, and convicted, of betting on games while he was the manager of the Cincinnati Reds in 1989. In 1991, he was deemed ineligible for ever being inducted in to the Hall of Fame, despite holding the record for the most hits in league history. Rose maintained his innocence until 2004, when he admitted to betting on MLB games and other sports.

 

1919 White Sox (Forever)

Eight members of the 1919 White Sox (or Black Sox as they became to be known) were handed lifetime suspensions for their roles in "throwing" the World Series. They were convicted of taking money in exchange for playing poorly. Among those suspended was "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, one of the greatest outfielders of all time.

 

Ron Artest (83 games)

Artest was suspended for his role in "Malice in the Palace." Artest went into the stands and threw punches at a fan who threw a cup of water at him. He was suspended for 73 regular season games and the 13 games his team played that year in the playoffs. Artest lost nearly $7 million in total salary that year. In a twist of fate, Artest later found out that the fan he fought wasn't even the guy who threw the cup at him.

 

Chris Simon (30 games)

Simon and the Islanders were facing the Penguins in December of 2007. During a timeout in the third period, the Penguins' Jarkko Ruutu exchanged some "pleasantries" with a member of the Islanders. Simon took exception to that conversation, tripping Ruutu to the ice. He then stomped on the back of Ruutu's leg with his skate. Simon was suspended 30 games (the remainder of the season). This came after a 25-game suspension in March of that year, in which he slashed Ryan Hollweg in the head.

 

Albert Haynesworth (5 games)

Haynesworth's Titans were playing the Cowboys on Oct. 1, 2006. After Julius Jones scored a rushing touchdown, the Cowboys' Andre Gurode fell to the ground. Haynesworth ripped Gurode's helmet off and twice stomped on his head. His first one missed, but his second attempted connected with Gurode's eye and forehead, in which he received 30 stitches to close the wounds below his eye. Haynesworth was suspended 5 games and lost more than $190,000.

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