The Falcons finished up their first joint practice with the Jets on Friday, and from the reports, it seems things didn’t go Atlanta’s way many times. But the most notable events that occurred were fights, which Arthur Smith has a zero-tolerance policy against.
“I’m only concerned with our team,” Falcons coach Arthur Smith said Thursday after practice. “When you’re competing against another team, you can’t fight in the game. It’s not tolerated. Somebody gets heated, does it, there’s got to be consequences.”
Third fight. #Jets Bradlee Anae needs to go. Swinging on folks. Practice stopped. Can’t shoot video of Jets D vs #Falcons 0.
— D. Orlando Ledbetter (@DOrlandoAJC) August 19, 2022
#Falcons RT Kaleb McGary win the battle and a brief skirmish ensued #Jets John Franklin-Myers. pic.twitter.com/TmppfOCxXa
— D. Orlando Ledbetter (@DOrlandoAJC) August 19, 2022
Fight No. 2 #Falcons at #Jets. pic.twitter.com/q2WhXwQolH
— D. Orlando Ledbetter (@DOrlandoAJC) August 19, 2022
A handful of players were kicked out of joint practices between the Patriots and Panthers earlier in the week, and it seems to be a theme across the NFL. The Falcons and Jets don’t have some deep hated rivalry against one another, so I’m not sure why the two squads were constantly on edge. It’s certainly evidence of a lack of maturity, especially among those battling for roster spots.
“So, I don’t know how to enforce it other than that; do you have somebody who’s got a problem?” Smith said. “An emotional-control problem, that’s probably somebody who you don’t want on the field in real games, either, because they’ll be a liability. You get off the field on third down, and they get a personal foul. It usually goes hand in hand.”
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Photographer: Ken Murray/Icon Sportswire
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