Tyler Boyd, the Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver, said the hit that started the minor feud and led him out in the loss to the Miami Dolphins last week.
In the second quarter, Boyd was in the back and knocked down a few yards out of bounds following an incomplete pass. Once Boyd got bored, Miami cornbuck Xavian Howard turned it over in his head and Boyd gave Miami cornbuck a similar task to Byron Jones.
Boyd and Howard were both expelled after the league office fee convinced both players to throw punches. Byrd disagreed but said the whole hit cleanup did not cause the whole incident.
“You never know what might have happened,” Boyd said. “It was a dirty game.”
Boyd was fined 15-yards for unnecessary roughness. On the next play, the Bengals kicker Randy Bullock missed a 53-yard field goal.
“I think that’s a bad call,” Boyd said. “I just felt like it was a little unnecessary on their behalf, hitting me all the way to the limit and I had a kind of experience.”
The incident between Byrd and the two Miami Cornwalls set the tone for the rest of the game. Two players from Cincinnati and two from Miami – three more – were sacked in the fourth quarter following a feud between the teams.
The Bengals safety Shane Williams, a Cincinnati player who was out in the fracas, was also suspended against the Dallas Cowboys for the Bengals game for stepping on a Dolphins player on the next drive after Byd.
On Monday, Bengals coach Zack Taylor said the late hit on Byrd was one of the many things he did not like from Sunday’s game.
“I thought (Byrd) got hit late to start the whole thing and he didn’t throw the first punch, and yet he’s the one who got penalized and kicked them both out.” “And it’s very frustrating when you’re standing there watching the whole situation with everyone else and we’ll take the result.”
Any penalties arising out of Byrd’s involvement in the incident could be known on Thursday, Byrd said. The recipient plans to appeal any judgment against him.
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