LAS VEGAS (AP) — Buffalo Bills safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson apologized to his teammates after being ejected from Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders for spitting on an opponent just before halftime.
“I got to be a better player. Got to be a better vet,” Gardner-Johnson said after Buffalo's 33-30 victory. “Let my emotions get above me, and I hurt my team. They brought me here to play big games like this, so I got to do better.”
Officials ejected
Gardner-Johnson for unsportsmanlike conduct following an exchange with a group of Raiders players, including tight end Brock Bowers.
“We had two players jawing back and forth and then our umpire witnessed him spitting on the opponent,” referee Shawn Smith told a pool reporter.
Smith said the NFL’s officiating department in New York confirmed the disqualification.
Bills coach Joe Brady said the incident reflected poorly on his team.
“The discipline of our football team has to improve and that sure as hell can’t happen,” Brady said. “The team is bigger than that, the situation is bigger than that, everything is bigger. It can’t happen, and it definitely has to be addressed.”
Brady said he hadn’t reviewed video of the incident but that officials told him the violation was clear.
“At the end of the day, if it shows up like that, like that can’t happen,” Brady said. “It’s uncalled for. It can’t happen. It is going to be addressed, and the team is way more important.”
Gardner-Johnson said he was emotional during a heated exchange and insisted he had nothing personal against Bowers or the Raiders.
“He never did nothing to me,” Gardner-Johnson said. “It’s just in the heat of the game, arguing and talking (expletive), and that gesture wasn’t warranted.”
Gardner-Johnson, 28, said he had spoken with coaches and apologized to his teammates, adding that he would accept whatever punishment followed. He could face a fine or suspension from the league.
Raiders coach Klint Kubiak praised his players for not retaliating, saying they had been warned about potential confrontations.
“That’s the expectation,” Kubiak said. “We knew going in there are certain guys that are going to try to do that to us, and the players knew before the game that if they got into it, they’d be standing by me on the sideline.”
The ejection also prompted a reaction from San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk, who alleged on social media that Gardner-Johnson had spit on him previously.
“This is the least surprising thing ever,” Juszczyk posted, adding that Gardner-Johnson “spit on me last year when we beat Chicago.”
Gardner-Johnson was ejected in 2024 while playing for Philadelphia and has been fined numerous times during his NFL career, though he has never been suspended.
Buffalo is his sixth NFL team in eight seasons. He previously played for New Orleans, Philadelphia, Detroit, Houston and Chicago before signing a one-year contract with the Bills.
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