Kiko Alonso explains how he ended up on the wrong sideline — and in turn, went viral

In the mostly empty Dolphins locker room late Saturday, Kiko Alonso allowed himself to chuckle about his new-found notoriety.

Alonso, the Dolphins linebacker, launched a thousand memes Saturday night by wandering over to the Ravens’ sideline after a third-down stop. Alonso only realized he was in the wrong place when Ravens coach John Harbaugh pointed him home.

The video was caught by broadcast cameras, and quickly seen by untold thousands — largely thanks to the Ravens tweeting it out.

But what exactly happened?

And was he OK?

Alonso quickly answered the second question in the affirmative. He did not suffer a concussion or any other kind of head injury.

Rather, he was just disoriented when he flipped after tackling Ravens tight end Maxx Williams on third down.

Here’s Alonso’s take, in his own, slightly sheepish words:

“I think if you go back and you can see the whole thing, I did a flip over the guy,” Alonso said. “Went over there, had my head down. I was totally fine. People obviously right off the bat, ‘Oh my God, is it a concussion?

“.... Then they’re about to make a play. They’re like, ‘Get out of there.’”

Alonso did not get out of there in time. He was flagged for delay of game, but not before Harbaugh got a hearty laugh from the absurdity of it all.

The jokes continued when he made it back to his own sidelines. And Alonso suspects they are just beginning.

“I’m definitely going to hear about it for a while, and it’s well deserved.”

Alonso is famously judicious with his words, and Saturday was probably the most he’s said on the record to reporters in a while.

And he proved that brevity truly is the soul of wit.

How did you realize you were on the wrong sideline?, a reporter asked.

“I looked.”

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This story was originally published August 25, 2018 at 11:17 PM.