Saints veteran fires back at latest "dirty play" accusations toward his teammate in social media rant
During the New Orleans Saints' Week 8 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, one play came into question across the NFL world, between Saints defensive lineman Nathan Shepherd and Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert. In an attempt to take Herbert down, Shepherd tried to twist down Herbert once he had let go of the football. His […]
During the New Orleans Saints' Week 8 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, one play came into question across the NFL world, between Saints defensive lineman Nathan Shepherd and Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.
In an attempt to take Herbert down, Shepherd tried to twist down Herbert once he had let go of the football. His initial contact with the QB does begin with the ball still in Herbert's hand, though. Herbert flipped it to his running back with the defender draped all over him.
Could Shepherd tell that the ball was gone? Was the takedown, in its style, an attempt to hurt the QB? Those are the questions being entertained across social media since it occurred.
That being said, one of Shepherd's teammates has come to his defense in a fierce way once he saw the response on Twitter/X.
Khalen Saunders defends Nathan Shepherd
Acho was not the only person calling out Shepherd and the Saints because of this play, either. All across social media, folks were fired up regarding Shepherd's decision to take down Herbert in the fashion he did, which drew a penalty flag.
Barstool Sports even chimed in on the play.
Chargers center Bradley Bozeman has gone fairly viral for his reaction to Shepherd's play against Herbert. He felt that it was a dirty play by the Saints lineman, too.
"It was probably one of the dirtier plays I've ever seen." — Bozeman
Saints head coach Dennis Allen also addressed the "dirty play" accusations during his Monday press conference. He agreed with Saunders' sentiments, indirectly.
"Here's a guy that's trying to wrap the quarterback up. He's on the ground, he has no idea if the quarterback has the ball or not. … There was nothing malicious about that play."
Saints players and coaches were always going to defend Shepherd, but that won't stop the aggressive accusations across social media. We will see if the NFL deems Shepherd's play a finable offense later this week.
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