Tag: Punch

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes addresses team competitiveness, TE Travis Kelce practice punch

Patrick Mahomes talked about the #Chiefs’ competitiveness and Travis Kelce’s punch incident during his comments after Wednesday’s workouts. | from: @EdEastonJr

Preparations for the 2023 season are well underway for the Kansas City Chiefs as they seek to repeat as Super Bowl champions. The challenge for most returning veterans is to remain sharp and improve on the formula that helped them achieve last season’s success.

After a record-breaking season that included both league and Super Bowl MVP honors, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is finding ways to improve at this year’s training camp while meshing with his young receivers.

The reigning MVP spoke with the media after Wednesday’s practice session at Missouri Western State University about the team’s improving chemistry and reflected on Travis Kelce’s punch incident last weekend.

“I think we all have a lot of guys out here that are super competitive,” Mahomes explained. “But it’s about just doing it the right way. I mean, Travis [Kelce] punching the guy [Jack Cochrane] is not necessarily the way you want to do it, but you love to see fire on both sides of the ball trying to finish to the last second.

“But I mean, that’s just kind of [the way] guys we’re gonna compete [against are], we’re going to argue out there on the football field. And we’re gonna love each other in the locker room because we got a lot of dudes that are super competitive on this team.”

In addition to his MVP win last year, Mahomes was the league leader in both passing yards and passing touchdowns, becoming the first player in NFL history to achieve all four in a season. Mahomes’ intensity was on display in the recent Netflix show “Quarterback” wherein the world got a glimpse at his dedication to improvement.

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Chiefs TE Travis Kelce responds on Twitter after tussle with teammate in practice

Travis Kelce offered a note of contrition on Twitter after throwing a punch at #Chiefs linebacker Jack Cochrane in Saturday’s practice.

Travis Kelce got into a brief tussle with linebacker Jack Cochrane at the Kansas City Chiefs’ training camp practice on Saturday. The incident was documented by Chiefs Wire’s own Nicolas Roesch, who posted a video of the altercation to Twitter shortly after it occurred on the field at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph.

Kelce took to Twitter after workouts ended to voice his contrition for his role in the skirmish, vowing to learn from the episode.

While this lapse in judgment is soon to be left in the past by his Chiefs teammates and Kansas City’s fans, it won’t be forgotten by Kelce, who is one of the team’s most cherished leaders.

Not known for being a hot-head, Kelce has had his share of controversies on-field but is generally known for being a mellow albeit high-energy presence in the Chiefs’ locker room.

Expect Kelce to make good on his commitment to growth as training camp and the preseason move along through August.

Chiefs TE Travis Kelce threw punch at LB Jack Cochrane during Saturday’s practice

#Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce threw a punch at linebacker Jack Cochrane during Saturday’s practice session in St. Joseph.

After getting into it with defensive back Dicaprio Bootle at practice on Friday, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce threw a punch at linebacker Jack Cochrane after some post-play contact at workouts on Saturday.

In a video posted to Twitter by Chiefs Wire’s own Nicolas Roesch, Kelce can be seen swinging on Cochrane and exchanging words with the second-year linebacker as his temper flared following a touchdown reception.

Physicality is to be expected at training camp, and intrasquad tussles like these are common, but Kelce’s decision to throw hands was likely a step too far. The eleven-year veteran has made a living catching passes in Andy Reid’s offense, and any injury that might result from a physical altercation like this one could spell disaster for the unit.

Watch for Kelce to make things right with Cochrane after practice and throughout the rest of training camp as he looks to squash any beef he may have with the second-year linebacker.

NFL fines C.J. Gardner-Johnson $15K for unsportsmanlike conduct vs. Bears

New Orleans Saints safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson was fined $15,000 for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against the Chicago Bears.

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New Orleans Saints safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson took a big hit to his wallet on Saturday, per Amie Just of the Times-Picayune | Advocate. Just reported that Gardner-Johnson was fined $15,000 for unsportsmanlike conduct in his team’s win over the Chicago Bears in last week’s Wild-Card Round playoff game, following an incident in which Bears receiver Anthony Miller struck Gardner-Johnson as the pair chirped after a play.

Miller was fined $8,959 for throwing the punch. It might seem odd for the one who got physical to be punished less heavily than the person who was hit, but the NFL isn’t viewing this through the lens of assailants and victims. Instead, Gardner-Johnson was treated as a repeat offender, having already been fined before for unsportsmanlike conduct. Per league rules, fines escalate for subsequent offenses.

In total, Gardner-Johnson has racked up more than $35,000 in fines this year. Considering he’s only in the second year of his low-cost rookie contract, his weekly checks pay out to about $39,700. So he’s lost nearly a full game’s salary to fines.

But it’s working. He’s gotten multiple players thrown out of games just by virtue of his trash talk, which is remarkable. What is he saying that’s getting his opponents so hot under the collar?

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Another Bears receiver ejected after punching C.J. Gardner-Johnson

Chicago Bears WR Anthony Miller was ejected after punching New Orleans Saints safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson during their playoff game.

Here we go again: some after-the-whistle shenanigans between New Orleans Saints safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and an opposing wideout resulted in a thrown punch and an ejection for Anthony Miller. What’s baffling is that this is the second time it’s happened this season, with Miller’s teammate Javon Wims having sucker-punched Gardner-Johnson in a meeting back in Week 8.

The second-year pro has a reputation as one of the NFL’s most tenacious chirpers, and it’s popped up again after he goaded Miller into committing a penalty that got him thrown from the game. But Gardner-Johnson was flagged, too, leading to a chat with his glowering coaches on the sidelines.

It’s just as unclear what Gardner-Johnson is saying to these opponents to get them so heated, but his own teammates aren’t immune to it; Michael Thomas was benched for a game after a scrap in practice with him. But it’s also uncertain what Gardner-Johnson heard from Sean Payton and defensive backs coach Aaron Glenn, who hit him with a withering stare on his way back to the bench.

Hopefully he can reel it in and avoid hurting his team. Gardner-Johnson’s antics have helped the Saints more often than not, but he’s flirting with disaster in playoff situations like this. The Saints have a very thin margin for error and the wrong words said at the wrong time could land them all in very hot water.

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Twitter reacts to Javon Wims sucker punching C.J. Gardner-Johnson

Twitter reacted after Chicago Bears wide receiver Javon Wims was ejected for sucker punching New Orleans Saints safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson.

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New Orleans Saints safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson was the victim of a surprising double-tap by Chicago Bears wide receiver Javon Wims, who approached Gardner-Johnson after a mundane play before sucker punching his opponent. It caused a brawl between Gardner-Johnson’s Saints teammates and the Bears offense and led to Wims being ejected from the remainder of the game.

It was very strange, to say the least. The incident sent social media into an uproar, with fans and former players on Twitter expressing confusion at what exactly just happened. Most of the befuddlement was understandable: why would Wims choose to punch a football helmet, twice?

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Rex Ryan dismisses idea he claimed IK Enemkpali to spite Jets

One of the wildest moments in Jets history got a little closure from former coach Rex Ryan

Details from one of the most infamous moments in Jets history came to light Tuesday after ESPN’s Rich Cimini documented the IK Enemkpali fight with Geno Smith from 2015.

The altercation allegedly began on Oct. 11, 2015 when Enemkpali approached Smith about paying him back $600 for a flight he didn’t use and ended when Enemkpali broke Smith’s jaw with a sucker punch for refusing to pay. The Jets cut Enemkpali almost immediately after the fight, but the linebacker found a home with a familiar coach the next day.

Former Jets and then-Bills coach Rex Ryan claimed Enemkpali. To take things a step further, Ryan made Enemkpali a captain for the Bills’ Week 1 showdown with the Jets only a month after the fight. 

Many, including the New York tabloids, saw the move as a jab at the Jets, who fired Ryan seven months earlier after six seasons with the team. Ryan, though, contends he made the move purely for football reasons. 

“Everybody said I picked him up because he punched Geno. Man, that had absolutely nothing to do with it.” Ryan told Cimini. “We needed players. I.K. was a young kid that I thought had some talent and could develop. It had nothing to do with punching Geno.”

Whether or not that’s true is hard to tell. Ryan and the Jets drafted Enemkpali in the sixth round in 2014, Ryan’s final season in New York. Enemkpali tallied three combined tackles in six games. Enemkpali was inexperienced and unproductive in one season with the Jets and only marginally more impactful in his lone season in Buffalo (13 tackles in 11 games). 

Naming Enemkpali the captain made everything look more suspicious. Ryan says he did that on purpose, but not because of the incident with Smith. 

“The fact that I made him captain, yeah, that was kind of an F-you thing to do,” Ryan said, “but I did it every single week whenever somebody played their former team.”