CLEVELAND – Cowboys defensive end David Irving took accountability for the first disqualification in his football career.
Irving and the Cleveland Browns' starting center, Cameron Erving, were ejected for an altercation following the fifth play from scrimmage Sunday.
Punches were thrown. Teammates intervened. And both players were sent to the locker room.
"Stuff happens. We play this game of football," Irving said after the game. "I did something I shouldn't have done. He did something he shouldn't have done. We both have to be accountable. It is what it is."
Asked to describe what caused the altercation, Irving said, "He came at me on the blindside. We wound up wrestling around. I winded up on top. I tried to get up a couple times. He was actually holding me down a little bit. Then it escalated. The refs came, teammates came. I wound up getting my helmet ripped off. No hard feelings, it's football. It happens.
"I knew what could have happened from that situation and I didn't handle it the right way."
