Bucs say Bears hit below belt Harris on tiffs that led to key penalty: You defend own against dirty players
September 22, 2008
BY BRAD BIGGS
bbiggs@suntimes.com Charles Tillman's 15-yard penalty for unnecessary roughness after he took a swing at Buccaneers wide receiver Michael Clayton was the end result of a disastrous melee that turned overtime in the Bucs' favor Sunday, but there are two sides to every story.
Tillman said it was a classic example of the second man in a scrape getting caught, but Bucs right tackle Jeremy Trueblood accused the Bears of precipitating the fray with some below-the-belt tactics.
''If you want me to be truthful with the situation, I don't know who it was, but they grabbed me in places they shouldn't have grabbed me after the play and that's what started the whole thing,'' Trueblood said. ''I think those guys take a lot of pride in what they do, and we take a lot of pride in what we do, but one thing I don't stand for is someone grabbing you in your genitals.''
Trueblood wrestled on the ground with defensive end Adewale Ogunleye and then the skirmish broke out that ended with Tillman trying to pull players off a pile before engaging with Clayton.
''I don't know who it was,'' Trueblood said. ''But whoever was beneath [me] paid the price. I was just doing what I do on a block. I was just laying on top of him, not moving. And then those guys ... we were kind of cool with the situation. That [stuff] happens on every play.
''Someone is going to grab and someone is going to poke. We were kind of letting it ride. I was going to get up, I was going to walk away.''
Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris had a different take.
''If a dude does something to your teammate, you go in and help,'' Harris said. ''The referee saw whatever he wanted to see. One of the dudes was doing something dirty to Wale on the ground after the play. They didn't get the first down, so we could have been going off the field. They were down there fighting and then everybody jumped in.
''Would you leave your teammate? Would you leave your partner out there in war if you see somebody jumping on them? No, it's the principle. We're men, man.
''Regardless of that, if I see my teammate down there getting stomped, two dudes jumping on Wale, one dude and another jumped in, he better not just walk off. If they walk off while I'm down there, we've got a problem. They better at least pull the dude off of me.
''Everybody knows that; you don't just leave your teammate.''
Harris said the cheap play started with the Bucs three hours earlier, when guard Arron Sears shoved him after the whistle on the first play.
''Their line is dirty and we knew that coming in,'' Harris said. ''I guess they thought they were going to come in here and just think we were going to accept that. Like Trueblood blindsided me when the play was over with.
[Trueblood] is dirty, he wants you to know that. Since he's not that talented and not that good, he wants you to know that, 'I'm the dirtiest player.''' 
I love that. Great comedy, but it would still be a lot more fun to read if we had come away with the W.