Cincinnati linebacker Vontaze Burfict was on the ground on the opposing sideline after hitting Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco out of bounds, and he said that's when a Ravens coach pushed him.
"The funny thing is, I was on their sideline, and I think it was the defensive coordinator, and he pushed me," Burfict said, according to the Baltimore Sun. "I was thinking, ‘Come on, man. You should have a little more class than that.’ And I will try to turn that into the league."
That's something the NFL would certainly frown upon, but Ravens coach John Harbaugh said it didn't happen.
"Yes, I heard him allege it," Harbaugh said, according to the Baltimore Sun. "That's all I heard. I don't take too much stock in that stuff. I thought our guys did a great job conducting themselves in that game with great poise and great class in spite of some of the stuff that went on."
The video of the TV broadcast doesn't show much of the incident Burfict claimed happened, but an unidentified assistant coach is standing over Burfict after the hit and then springs up quickly. Burfict angrily reacts after that, turning to confront the coach in question. That happens about 13 seconds into the video at the top of this post.
There is no definitive proof, but check out the video for yourself.
Burfict said it was the defensive coordinator who pushed him, but Ravens coordinator Dean Pees calls games from the press box. So he was mistaken on at least the identity of the coach he's claiming pushed him. Still, the NFL will likely look into if he is telling the truth about his claim he was shoved on the sideline by someone on the Ravens staff.
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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdowncorner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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