Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tyler Boyd said the hit that sparked a minor scuffle and led to his ejection in last weekend’s loss to the Miami Dolphins was “dirty.”
In the second quarter, Boyd was shoved in the back and knocked down a few yards out of bounds following an incomplete pass. Once Boyd got up, Miami cornerback Xavien Howard shoved him in the head and Boyd responded with a similar act to Miami cornerback Byron Jones.
Boyd and Howard were both ejected after the league office deemed both players to have thrown punches. Boyd disagreed with that but said the hit that caused the whole incident was not clean.
“You never know what could have happened,” Boyd said. “It was a dirty play.”
Boyd was given a 15-yard penalty for unnecessary roughness. On the next play, Bengals kicker Randy Bullock missed a 53-yard field goal.
“I feel like it was a bad call,” Boyd said. “I just felt like it was a little unnecessary on their behalf, hitting me all the way out of bounds and I kind of felt some type of way.”
The incident between Boyd and the two Miami cornerbacks set the tone for the rest of the game. Three more players were ejected – one from Cincinnati and two from Miami – after a scuffle between the teams in the fourth quarter.
Bengals safety Shawn Williams, who was the Cincinnati player ejected in that fracas, was also suspended for the Bengals’ game against the Dallas Cowboys for stepping on a Dolphins player on the ensuing drive following Boyd’s ejection.
On Monday, Bengals coach Zac Taylor said the late hit on Boyd was one of many things he didn’t like from Sunday’s game.
“I thought (Boyd) got hit late out of bounds to start the whole thing and did not throw the first punch, and yet he’s the one that got penalized and they both got ejected,” Taylor said. “And that’s very frustrating when you’re standing right there watching the whole situation along with everybody else and we take the brunt of it.”
Any fines stemming Boyd’s involvement in the incident will likely be known on Thursday, Boyd said. The receiver plans on appealing any ruling against him.