Tom Brady Takes Heat for Attempting to Kick Falcons Player During Controversial Play

By Brian Jones

The entire NFL world was talking about a controversial play that included Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady and Atlanta Falcons defensive lineman Grady Jarrett. Toward the end of the game, Jarrett sacked Brady on a third-down play, and it look like the Falcons were going to have an opportunity to win the game. However, Jarrett was called for a roughing the passer penalty, allowing the Buccaneers to keep the drive going and hold on for the victory. But one thing that stood out with the play is Brady seen attempting to kick Jarrett after the sack. ESPN's Mike Greenberg and former NFL safety Ryan Clark talked about the kick on the ESPN show Get Up and said they did not like how Brady handled the situation. 

"The thread of commonality in it all is Tom Brady, by the way. Nothing could be more Brady than him trying to kick Grady Jarrett as he's going off," Greenberg said via Fox News. "Anyone else does that, they're throwing a penalty on the guy on the ground. Tom Brady deserved a penalty on this play, not Grady Jarrett. He tried to kick him in the ding-ding, and the next thing you know, Grady Jarrett gets a 15-yard penalty." 

Clark agreed with Greenberg. "What he did was roll over with Tom Brady in his hand and lay him on the ground and then Brady tries to kick Grady in the Grady Jarrett maker," he said. And when talking about Jarrett's penalty, Clark said, "This is absolute trash. How in the hell is he supposed to get him on the ground? There is no other way for Tom Brady to end up on the grass unless Grady Jarrett puts him there." 

While appearing on the radio station 680 The Fan in Atlanta on Tuesday morning, Jarrett addressed appearing to be kicked by Brady, a move that was not penalized. Jarrett said he spoke with officials about it and told them (per ESPN), "'Look, you see him now. Let's clean it up.' You know what I'm saying? And then it happened again at the end of the game. I'm like, so we going to let this slide?" While the kick was talked about on social media, fans were angry at the officials because they penalized Jarett for making a legal play. It's likely the roughing the passer penalty will be looked at during the offseason. 

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