The WFT became the latest D.C. Sports team to have a fight amongst teammates mid-game.
Washington Football fans that were looking forward to Sunday night’s primetime matchup against the Dallas Cowboys were in for a rude awakening. From the get-go, Washington was outplayed in a large part due to their roster being decimated by COVID and injuries. The Team had to rely on a plethora of third and fourth stringers.
Washington ended up losing in embarrassing fashion, 56-14. Tempers reached a boiling point in the second quarter when star defensive lineman Daron Payne and Johnathan Allen got into a heated disagreement on the sidelines.
After some discussion, Paye jabbed a finger at Allen’s head, who responded by hitting him in the face. The scuffle was quickly broken up, but became the focus of the national broadcast.
For Allen and Payne, they have been friends and teammates dating back to their time together at the University of Alabama. The situation was being blown out of proportion because tempers flare. While it was unfortunate to be caught during a live broadcast, this isn’t the first time this has happened in sports.
In fact, D.C. sports has been home to a similar incident back in 2015. Entering the 2015 season, the Nationals were picked as preseason favorites to win the World Series. Unfortunately, injuries and inconsistency derailed the team’s season.
A day after Washington was eliminated from the playoff hunt, the then face of the franchise Bryce Harper and closer Jonathan Papelbon got into a heated exchange. It started when Harper flew out to the outfield and while walking back to the dugout, was yelled at by Papelbon for not running it out.
The situation quickly escalated and Papelbon grabbed Harper by the throat and slammed him into the dugout bench. The two were quickly separated, but the damage was done. Papelbon was suspended for four games, which ended his season.
The Papelbon era was short-lived with the closer being granted his release during the 2016 season.