The Atlanta Falcons suffered yet another embarrassing loss at home versus the Los Angeles Rams in Week 7. The only highlight of the day for running back Devonta Freeman was his brief scuffle with defensive tackle Aaron Donald.
Freeman registered just 26 yards on nine touches before he was ejected for attempting to throw a punch at Donald. He admittedly regrets his part in the spat, via D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“It just can’t happen,” Freeman said. “Both of us are pros. It wasn’t intentional or [anything] like that. I’m a competitor and he’s a competitor. It just happened.”
“We had a screen play or something like that on. He got in the backfield so fast, I kind of chipped him and stuff. Both of us said a few things to each other and it kind of escalated from there. Both of us are competitors. We are football players. We ain’t boxers. I know I can’t let my emotions get out hand like that again. I was definitely just out there trying to compete.”
The move was ill-advised for a number of obvious reasons. Not only did Freeman's ejection deal a crushing blow to Atlanta's offense, but the video of him being lifted off the ground by Donald went viral on social media. In this case, he lost both the battle and the war against Los Angeles.
Regardless, it is still encouraging to see Freeman take responsibility for his actions. Although the Falcons have not had much to hang their hat on in the 2019 NFL season, he remains an integral part of their offense.
Freeman is hoping to bounce back against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 8 and will hopefully refrain from picking fights with any more defensive tackles the rest of the season.
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