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NFL Insider Addresses Possible Punishment for Lamar Jackson After Bills Fan Incident

Kristen Wong

Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson was involved in an incident with a Bills fan during Sunday night's game.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson was involved in an incident with a Bills fan during Sunday night's game. / Mark Konezny-Imagn Images
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Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson started his 2025 season with a tough loss to swallow—and a bit of controversy to boot.

In Sunday night's 41-40 defeat to the Bills, Jackson was involved in an incident with a Bills fan after the Ravens scored a touchdown in the third quarter. Ravens wideout DeAndre Hopkins was celebrating his touchdown catch with his teammates in the end zone near a section of Bills fans in the stands, and they weren't too happy to see him. One fan reached out and slapped Hopkins and Jackson on the helmet as they walked past, prompting Jackson to immediately turn around and shove him.

Jackson briefly addressed the incident in his postgame presser and apologized for his actions: "You gotta think in those situations, you know you've got security out there, let security handle it. I just let my emotions get the best of me. But hopefully it doesn't happen again," said Jackson.

On Monday, NFL insider Jonathan Jones discussed the likelihood of Jackson getting disciplined by the league for his shove.

"It’s possible that they will issue some sort of discipline, I hope not," Jones said. "I hope what it is is a message to Lamar like, 'Hey, so what you did, get why you did it, don't do it again.' Just let him off with a warning is what I hope the NFL ultimately does. I would be surprised if the NFL issues a form of discipline or punishment that results in a fine."

The chances of Jackson even getting fined for his retaliation act admittedly still feel low, considering that the fan was clearly in the wrong for putting his hands on an NFL player.

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Kristen Wong
KRISTEN WONG

Kristen Wong is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. She has been a sports journalist since 2020. Before joining SI in November 2023, Wong covered four NFL teams as an associate editor with the FanSided NFL Network and worked as a staff writer for the brand’s flagship site. Outside of work, she has dreams of running her own sporty dive bar.

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