Xerri was referred directly to the tribunal on the serious misconduct charge. He said in evidence during Monday afternoon's hearing that the bizarre incident was a "brain fade".
As expected, Xerri threw himself at the mercy of the tribunal and the only argument was over the punishment.
Tribunal chair Jeff Gleeson KC praised Xerri for his candid evidence, noting it may have saved him a bigger penalty, but called the incident "disgraceful behaviour" in handing down the ban.
North advocate Justin Graham KC argued for a two-game suspension, while the AFL's Andrew Woods SC wanted three.
The incident during Saturday night's game overshadowed North's 12-point win over the Bombers.
The Kangaroos play on Good Friday and the hearing was held a day earlier than normal.
The incident happened after the North Melbourne big man had complained to an umpire about a blood nose before kicking a goal and clashing physically with McGrath.
Xerri then touched his bloody nose and wiped his hand on McGrath's face.
The ruckman called McGrath to apologise, saying in evidence that it was a good conversation, and added he was "completely owning" the mistake.
Xerri said he reacted after being sledged by Essendon opponents. He had just kicked the goal from a free kick.
"I was getting called a 'weak c-word. A effing, flopping c-word'," he said.
"It's not right what I did. I'm sorry and sincerely apologise for that.
"It was just a lapse in judgement. There's no excuses, mate. It's a poor look. I had a brain fade. I was defending myself and in that moment I had a brain fade. I should have done better."
The incident predictably attracted widespread condemnation ahead of the hearing, with AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon on Sunday saying it was "something that we don't want to see."
Former Collingwood captain Nathan Buckley was suspended for one game after he wiped blood on Geelong tagger Cameron Ling's jumper in 2002.
Ling on Sunday recalled there was "no malice" in the Buckley incident, but declared Xerri's action unacceptable in the modern game.
Essendon great Matthew Lloyd told the Nine Network the suspension had to be at least two weeks, but he wouldn't be surprised if it was three or four.
On Monday, former St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt told Triple M radio he expected Xerri to be suspended for a month.
North Melbourne, who have two wins from three games, will be without their first-choice ruckman for games against Carlton, Richmond and the Brisbane Lions.
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