When the Oakland Raiders brought Richie Incognito, Antonio Brown, and Vontaze Burfict to the Bay Area, there was a belief that this trio would find themselves in the center of controversy. Brown proved this when he forced his way out of town and then Burfict was suspended for the remainder of the season for a helmet-to-helmet hit. Now Incognito could be facing a punishment of his own after an illegal play on Sunday.
With the Raiders heading toward a potential score in London, Incognito was flagged for unnecessary roughness. As replay showed, he shoved Bears corner Buster Skrine’s head into the turf at the end of a play. The officials penalized Incognito and pushed the Raiders out of field-goal range with a 15-yard assessment.
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Instead of kicking a field goal to take the lead, the Raiders were instead forced to punt the ball away to the Bears.
Richie Incognito was flagged for slamming a Bears players head into the ground. What are your thoughts on the Raiders? pic.twitter.com/zP7HrNU0Vd
— Belly Up Football 🏈 (@BellyUpFootball) October 6, 2019
This is the second time in eight days that a member of the Oakland Raiders has been penalized for an illegal hit. Linebacker Vontaze Burfict was ejected from last Sunday’s victory over the Indianapolis Colts after he hit tight end Jack Doyle in the helmet. The league also announced on Monday that Burfict would be suspended for the remainder of the season. Although that decision is being appealed in the coming days.
Similar to Burfict, Incognito has a checkered past that could play a potential role in any punishment handed down by the league. He was part of a bullying scandal in Miami back in 2014 that resulted in him being cut and spending a year out of football.
Once he returned to the active lineup as a member of the Buffalo Bills, Incognito was a Pro Bowl guard, but he also dealt with multiple off-the-field issues that resulted in arrests. One such incident occurred at a funeral home in Arizona and resulted in Incognito being suspended for the first two games of the 2019 season.
Given his history, it’s likely that the Raiders guard will be fined for his actions on Sunday. A suspension is also possible, but that will have to be determined by the league office. If Incognito is shelved for any period of time, his absence would certainly impact the pass protection, as well as the running attack.
