Former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Cris Carter is coming to the defense of Lamar Jackson after his incident with a fan during the Baltimore Ravens' 41-40 loss to the Buffalo Bills.
During a touchdown celebration in front of the home crowd in Buffalo, a fan in a Bills jersey slapped Jackson and teammate DeAndre Hopkins on their helmets. Jackson shoved the fan, who was ejected from the stadium.
Carter appeared on Monday's edition of the "Up & Adams" show. He stated he had no problem with how Jackson responded, considering the fan went into the player's space rather than it being the other way around.
"I like his answer in the press conference," Carter said. "But that's not what you're supposed to do. That's not what fans are supposed to be about. You can yell, say stuff. But when you put your hands and actually touch one of my teammates, and then you decide to touch myself, there's going to be an issue.
"I have no problem with the way he responded. It was quick and decisive. Get off me. Don't touch me. And he didn't make the point any bigger than that. And I like the way he addressed it after the game. Yes, it did happen and in that moment, he got out of character. But we are human, and I'm happy with his action."
As Carter mentioned, Jackson addressed the incident in his post-game press conference with the media, noting that he let his emotions get the best of him.
“He slapped me, and he was talking – so, I just forgot where I was for a little bit,” Jackson said (h/t The Guardian). “You have to think in those situations. You have security out there; let security handle it. But I just let my emotions get the best of me. Hopefully, it doesn’t happen again. I learned from that.”
The Bills fan who shoved the helmets of Lamar Jackson and DeAndre Hopkins following a third-quarter Baltimore touchdown on Sunday night has been banned from attending games.
According to the Bills (h/t Pro Football Talk), the fan is “indefinitely banned” from their stadium as well as all other NFL venues.