Miami Dolphins’ Xavien Howard ejected after minor fight with Bengals’ Boyd
The Dolphins will be without their best player in the second half of Sunday’s game against the Bengals.
Officials kicked cornerback Xavien Howard out of the game after he and Bengals wide receiver Tyler Boyd pushed and slapped each other on the sideline after a third-down incompletion.
The referees determined Howard and Boyd exchanged punches and ejected them both.
But CBS rules expert Gene Steratore (a former NFL officials) said that he didn’t see anything during the exchange that would rise to the level of an ejection. And upon replay, it appeared more like they exchanged shoves than punches.
Howard was tossed about an hour after picking off his NFL-leading eighth pass. He intercepted a deep ball from Brandon Allen thrown down the left sideline to Boyd early in the game.
Without Howard, the Dolphins will have to rely more on rookie Noah Igbinoghene, who has barely played on defense since struggling earlier in the season.
The mini skirmish was a fitting end to a sloppy half of football.
The Dolphins were flagged six times for 44 yards in the first two quarters. The entered the game ranked second in penalty yards per game (37.3).
This story was originally published December 6, 2020 at 2:50 PM.
