Before the Bengals and Steelers kicked off Sunday, Cincinnati linebacker Vontaze Burfict emerged from the tunnel saying, "They ain't gonna like me today!"
From there, the teams headed out to midfield for the coin flip, after which Burfict refused to shake hands with the Steelers' captains, according to SN's Alex Marvez. The players he snubbed were Roosevelt Nix, Ben Roethlisberger and Cam Heyward.
That ended up not being Burfict's only encounter with Nix in the game. On the second play, Burfict kicked Nix in the head. He also engaged with Nix later in the game, apparently trying to shove the fullback.
Vontaze Burfict refused to shake the Steelers’ hands during coin toss and then tried to kick them. pic.twitter.com/a8qoqf4Mzu
— Jordan Heck (@JordanHeckFF) October 22, 2017
Burflict still up with his antics on Nix. Trying get a shot in @Alex_Kozora @Steelersdepot @mmarczi @DavidMTodd #steelers pic.twitter.com/JVa8EcJh49
— T R (@TimotRice) October 22, 2017
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The referee arrived immediately after the incident but did not throw a penalty flag.
Burfict has a long history of dirty plays, including earlier this season. During the preseason, a dirty hit from Burfict landed him a three-game suspension, which was eventually reduced to one game. He was also suspended in 2016 for "repeated violations of player safety rules."
He wasn't penalized for Sunday's play, but there is a chance the league will review it for a possible fine or suspension.
UPDATE: After the game, Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell saw the play and chimed in on Twitter. He was upset with Burfict's actions and said he's "gotta go."
man dude gotta go man...that’s not football AT ALL!! https://t.co/IFbNZPZtWR
— Le'Veon Bell (@L_Bell26) October 23, 2017
it’s unbelievable the league is just condoning this activity...but if Rosie reacts, Rosie would be the one that would get into trouble https://t.co/IFbNZPZtWR
— Le'Veon Bell (@L_Bell26) October 23, 2017
