Monday night’s 20-9 victory over the Carolina Panthers took a nasty turn when San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings struck Panthers defensive back Tre’Von Moehrig after the game.
The players were quickly separated, but both could face suspension for their actions during the game. Jennings’ attack on Moehrig came after the defensive back was spotted on the ESPN broadcast cameras punching the wide receiver in the groin area after a play.
Jennings didn’t immediately retaliate, but pointed out the incident to officials. No penalty flag was thrown at the time, leading to the wide receiver to take matters into his own hands after the game.
“That was just out of nowhere,” Jennings said after the game. “I think it’s probably just like I was saying, just the history of me playing ball. I play hard. I’m physically stronger than a lot of DBs out there and a lot of things happen in between the whistles. With me at least.”
The wide receiver said he was “just responding to some childish behavior.” Instead of being mad with his wide receiver’s actions, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan supported Jennings and admitted he was “proud” of his decision not to retaliate immediately.
“I was really proud of Jauan for not losing his mind out there and getting to the sideline,” Shanahan said after the game.
For his part, Moehrig claimed his actions were an “isolated” event. “He was just doing some extra stuff after the play,” he said. “I’ll take that one. It wasn’t just frustration. It was isolated.”
Both players could face suspension for their actions – or a potential fine from the league.
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