For the second straight week, the Broncos have to worry about the potential loss of a starting defensive back.
Last week, cornerback Aqib Talib was suspended for poking Colts tight end Dwayne Allen in the eye. On Sunday, safety T.J. Ward was ejected for punching Chiefs receiver Jeremy Maclin in the back of the head.
“I got emotional,” Ward told reporters after the game. “I didn’t really punch him. I don’t even think that I punched him, if you see it, but it looked like a windup. You can take it how it is. It was an emotional game. A hard fought [game] for us, defensively with a lot of things going on that you guys weren’t able to see. I lost control.”
Ward elaborated on his claim that the Chiefs played dirty.
“It was their team as a whole,” Ward said. “They were a pretty dirty team: The O-linemen, receivers and tight ends. They were doing it last game and they continued to do it this game. It took an effect on me.”
Ward said he’s concerned about a potential suspension — and for good reason. The league office tends to be more inclined to suspend for gratuitous acts of violence. (Except when Pacman Jones removes Amari Cooper’s helmet and slams Cooper’s head into it.)
If Ward is going to be suspended, a preliminary decision would likely come Monday. Any appeal hearing would happen Tuesday, with a ruling likely that same day.