As far as excuses go, “I was just kidding around” isn’t a very strong one. Unless, of course, you were actually just kidding around.
Such was the predicament Oakland Raiders tight end Lee Smith found himself in Sunday night. Midway through the second quarter, an official flagged Smith for a 15-yard personal foul penalty after his apparent late hit on Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Davon Godchaux.
But as the ref announced Smith’s punishment, the broadcast audio picked up the tight end telling him, “I was just kidding around!”
That response is funny enough, but it turns out Smith was right. Replay showed the veteran tight end playfully jumping into Godchaux, who likely was his friend and not at all offended by the horseplay.
Alas, the ref was not in on the joke and wasn’t about to let any rabble-rousing happen on his watch.
Fortunately for Smith, the penalty didn’t matter much; Oakland ended up scoring on that drive and went on to beat Miami 27-24.
Thumbnail photo via Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports Images
