Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Richie Incognito has responded to allegations by Houston Texans defensive lineman Antonio Smith that he tried to "break [Smith's] ankle" during the second quarter of last Sunday's game.
After the Texans beat the Dolphins, 30-10, Smith accused Incognito of being a dirty player.
"Everything that's illegal that can be done on the football field he does it," Smith said. "But mainly he was hitting people after the play, sliding down on your leg grabbing your ankle and trying to twist to break your ankle and he was doing it right in front of the referees and he was still in the game."
Incognitio's initial response wasn't very remorseful.
"I will never apologize for the way I play football," Incognito said. "Physical- Hard Nose football from snap to whistle. Get with it or get run over by it."
He has since explained the incident even more by sending direct messages to Pro Football Talk on Twitter.
"I have seen the video. Once the ball was fumbled I grabbed his legs to stop him from recovering the fumble. It's clear that I wrap my arms around both his legs. I was trying to keep him from scrambling to the ball.
"After the ball was recovered I felt him kicking me. I was trying to protect myself. Kind of like a turtle in a shell. At no time was I turning his ankle. My intent was to keep him from getting to the ball.
"Obviously in a case like this I have no ground to stand on [because] of my reputation. There is no evidence of me trying to injure him. The reason I'm seen holding onto one of his legs [because] he started kicking me in the arm and neck the the other. I had both legs in my grasp. The fact of the matter is I'm laying on his leg. There is no twisting motion whatsoever. He is clearly kicking me in the neck. Talk about dirty?"
SB Nation's Miami Dolphins blog, The Phinsider, and the Houston Texans blog, Battle Red Blog, shared their takes on the incident.
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