Vontaze Burfict vs. Steve Smith: Two pops, one flop, one bad penalty

Vinnie Iyer

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Vontaze Burfict vs. Steve Smith: Two pops, one flop, one bad penalty image

Vontaze Burfict got in his cheap shot on Steve Smith Sr. He also made sure to get away with a penalty — and made sure Smith didn't.

The Bengals linebacker smacked the Ravens' wide receiver in the back, not once, but twice late in the first quarter on Sunday, away from where Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco was being sacked on a third-down red zone play. Smith's natural feisty response was to turn around, pop up, and put his helmet in the midsection of Burfict.

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Burfict — following the lead from some of the best actors in professional soccer — sold a ridiculous flop, hands raised and all. The officials bit, flagging Smith for a personal foul penalty. Burfict got away with his latest dirty play, unscathed.

MORE: Burfict fined for obscene gesture

Given Burfict's reputation, you can expect the NFL will want to take a longer look at that later. In short term, however, it cost Smith and his team 15 yards. Luckily, because Baltimore has Justin Tucker as its kicker, the Ravens still got a field goal to make it 10-0, from 52 instead of 37 yards.

Yep, it totally makes sense a Smith, at 5-9, 195, would bring down a 6-1, 250-pounder down to the ground just like that with a simple head to the gut.

 

 

Vinnie Iyer

Vinnie Iyer Photo

Vinnie Iyer, has been with TSN since 1999, not long after graduating from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. He has produced NFL content for more than 20 years, turning his attention to full-time writing in 2007. A native of St. Louis, Mo. but now a long-time resident of Charlotte, N.C. Vinnie’s top two professional sports teams are Cardinals and Blues, but he also carries purple pride for all things Northwestern Wildcats. He covers every aspect of the NFL for TSN including player evaluations, gambling and fantasy football, where he is a key contributor. Vinnie represents TSN as host of the “Locked On Fantasy Football” podcast on the Locked On network. Over his many years at TSN, he’s also written about MLB, NBA, NASCAR, college football, tennis, horse racing, film and television. His can’t-miss program remains “Jeopardy!”, where he was once a three-day champion and he is still avid about crossword puzzles and trivia games. When not watching sports or his favorite game show, Vinnie is probably watching a DC, Marvel or Star Wars-related TV or movie.