Lovie Smith confronts Austin Seferian-Jenkins over Instagram post
Buccaneers head coach Lovie Smith confronted rookie tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins about a photo he posted on Instagram and asked him to take it down.
Seferian-Jenkins caught a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter of Sunday's game against Atlanta which put Tampa Bay ahead 17-16. After the play, he used the ball as a prop to celebrate and was issued a 15-yard penalty. The Falcons started their next drive on their own 35-yard line and regained the lead 10 plays later. Atlanta went on to win, 27-17.
"We go over the rules, of course, that you can’t use a prop after a touchdown," Smith said, according to the St. Petersburg Times. "But when you do it in that situation, it's just not good."
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On Sunday night, Seferian-Jenkins posted a photo of the celebration on his Instagram page.
Screenshot via Tampabay.com
"When guys make mistakes, I confront them immediately, which happened this time," Smith said, referring to the post.
Seferian-Jenkins told reporters Monday he realized posting the photo was a mistake.
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"At the end of the day, it's my Instagram. I posted a picture. I shouldn't have posted it,"Seferian-Jenkins said, according to the Times. “We’re in the middle of a 1-8 season and I can see why people were upset with it."
The loss dropped the Bucs to 1-8 on the season, but the team is only three games behind the Saints for first place in the NFC South. Their next game is on Sunday on the road against Washington.
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