After Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict was ejected from last Sunday’s game against the Titans for making contact with an official, one of his teammates said that officials have tried to provoke Burfict by cursing at him during games in recent weeks.
Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said it would “shock” him if that was the case, but now Burfict is making the same claim.
“The refs, they come up to me, talking to me disrespectfully, wanting me to curse back at them, but me cursing back at them isn’t going to help me,” Burfict said, via ESPN.com. “I’m not going to get a flag in my favor next time around, but that’s the way they handle business, I guess. I told [Lewis] I’m just going to try to stay out of the refs’ way.”
Burfict was ejected after pushing down judge Jeff Bergman’s arm away when Bergman placed it on Burfict to separate him from a Titans player he was arguing with after a play.
“I knew I didn’t do anything bad,” Burfict said. “Obviously, you are not supposed to touch the officials, but I didn’t think I touched him maliciously at all. I pretty much said, ‘Excuse me.’”
Burfict said he doesn’t think officials should be allowed to put their hands on players if actions like his result in an ejection because being “in the heat of the moment” can lead to those kinds of reactions.