Cincinnati Bengals’ rookie Shemar Stewart went viral earlier this week when his inadvertent practice hit on quarterback Joe Burrow sparked a benches clearing brawl between teammates.
Stewart was initially getting buried by fans online who wondered how someone could make such a boneheaded mistake on the practice field. But since the video that clearly shows the rookie slipping and falling while rushing the A-gap has surfaced, his critics have grown silent.
He revealed to the media on Friday what his teammate Joe Burrow said to him after the incident.
“I said ‘You know, Joe, it was an accident. You know I never meant to do that,’” Stewart told reporters. “He said ‘It’s cool as long as you do it on Sundays, too,’”
Stewart Speaks Why He Ran Into Joe Burrow
Touching the quarterback is a no-go, at any level of football. Even as a lowly back-up FCS quarterback, I was off limits.
When you’re talking about the future MVP of this league? You’ve got some explaining to do.
And explaining he did, Stewart detailed the entire play, start to finish, for the room filled with reporters.
“On the loop, the ground gave way under my foot, and I was just falling,” Stewart said. “I had my head down, and I couldn’t really see where I was going. All I knew is I was falling. Then the next you know…”
Stewart also explained that, while he felt bad, he was not too hung up on it because he knew his true intentions.
“It’s an accident,” he said. “We know not to touch the main guy. I slipped. Next time I should just fall out of the way or something. I learned.”
Burrow was ultimately fine, popping right off the turf, but that didn’t stop his offense from coming to his defense. Tempers mellowed while the two’s took the next three reps, but perhaps a conversation took place while the starters were huddled up because as soon as they had their chance, they let Stewart have it. Starting left guard Lucas Patrick started it by laying into Stewart and keeping up the intensity well after the whistle blew.
Stewart spoke on this as well.
“It was just a lot of love,” Stewart said with a laugh. “A lot of passion on the field. You’ve got to get it out somehow. If you keep it in, it’s not going to be good for your team, or for yourself.”
Captain Ted Karras Had Harsh Words For Stewart
Lucas Patrick, who let up the sack and initiated the brawl, spoke nothing but kind words about his teammate Stewart. Complimenting his speed and strength and saying he is an elite young pass rusher.
Center Ted Karras, however, did not speak the same way. He was disappointed in the rookie. While he understood it was a mistake, the veteran entering his tenth year in the league said it was a mistake that cannot happen.
“It doesn’t matter. The result is the result,” Karras told reporters Wednesday. “C’mon, man. That’s our hopes and dreams right there.”
“It happened, we had to respond, and we’ve got to go into this meeting and get better.”
