Lamar Jackson says he 'let my emotions get the best of me' after shoving fan in Ravens' 41-40 loss to Bills
Quarterback pushed a Buffalo fan who struck him and DeAndre Hopkins during a celebration as the Bills rallied for a dramatic fourth-quarter comeback
Lamar Jackson acknowledged he "let my emotions get the best of me" after shoving a fan who struck him during a third-quarter celebration in Baltimore's season-opening 41-40 loss at Buffalo on Sunday night.
The incident occurred after a one-handed DeAndre Hopkins touchdown that put the Ravens up 34-19 late in the third quarter. As Hopkins and Jackson ran alongside the stands, a Bills fan slapped Hopkins and struck Jackson in the helmet. Jackson shoved the fan, who was promptly ejected from the game. "He slapped me, and he was talking — so, I just forgot where I was for a little bit," Jackson told reporters afterward. "You have to think in those situations. You have security out there; let security handle it. But I just let my emotions get the best of me. Hopefully, it doesn’t happen again. I learned from that."
Jackson said he would not refrain from similar celebrations in the future, noting he was celebrating a teammate's score. "I’ve never seen our fans do that," he said. "So, I’ll probably do it again when we score a touchdown. It’s not nothing against the fans. I’m just celebrating when my teammates get a touchdown."
The confrontation was a notable moment in a contest that otherwise appeared to tilt in Baltimore’s favor. The Bills staged a furious comeback late in regulation, with quarterback Josh Allen accounting for two touchdowns and a field goal in the final four minutes to erase a 15-point deficit. A crucial Derrick Henry fumble helped Buffalo after it had already cut the Ravens’ lead to 40-32.
Jackson finished the night with 209 passing yards, 70 rushing yards and three total touchdowns. He urged his team to learn from the loss. "You just got to finish the game," he said. "It’s not over until there is zero, zero, zero on the clock. And we found that out tonight."
The game marked a bitter opener for Baltimore, which had been eliminated by Buffalo in the AFC divisional round last season. The Ravens return home to face the Cleveland Browns in Week 2.