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Lamar Jackson has apologized to the fan he exchanged shoves with during the Baltimore Ravens' devastating loss to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.
The ugly scene unfolded in the third quarter of the thrilling Week 1 showdown when receiver DeAndre Hopkins and Jackson celebrated a Ravens touchdown that extended their lead to 34-19 - much to the anger of the home Buffalo crowd.
As the players got close to the stands, Hopkins was pushed hard in the helmet by an overzealous man in a Bills jersey, before Jackson then received the same treatment.
Rather than ignoring it like his teammate, Jackson took issue with the fan and shoved him backwards into the crowd and the moment quickly went viral.
'My apologies to him,' Jackson said on Wednesday. 'Just chill next time. You can talk trash and stuff, but keep your hands to yourself.'
The fan was immediately ejected by stadium security and has been banned from all NFL games and events.
Lamar Jackson has apologized to the fan he exchanged shoves with during the Bills game
The fan started the incident by first slapping DeAndre Hopkins on the helmet after a TD
Lamar Jackson then pushed the Buffalo Bills fan who kept slapping players on the helmet
Coach John Harbaugh defended Jackson earlier this week. He said Wednesday he and general manager Eric DeCosta have spoken to Jackson about the incident, and that DeCosta and team president Sashi Brown have talked to the league about it.
'I've seen him slap D Hop,' Jackson explained immediately after Sunday night's game.
'He slapped me, he was talking. I forgot where I was for a little bit but you've got to think in those situations. 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. I'll learn from that.'
Most of the immediate reaction backed quarterback Jackson for hitting back against the fan.
'I think Lamar saw the first one and took one himself,' NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth said, watching the replay back.
'I'm not excusing, you can't go after fans in the stands but sometimes that gets a little ridiculous.'
Meanwhile, another ugly scene unfolded in the fourth quarter of the game, as Ravens star Derrick Henry raced into the end zone for his second touchdown of the night.
Jackson was dominant in the first half in Buffalo before the Bills staged a dramatic comeback
At the end of the play, a beer was thrown at the running back, narrowly missing him and the Bills players in pursuit.
Bills fans - known as 'Bills Mafia' - have a reputation for causing rowdy atmospheres, especially when their team plays in the late games in the NFL.
They even have a 'table smashing' tradition when they tailgate before kickoff at Highmark Stadium.
Astonishingly, despite trailing by 15 points in the fourth quarter on Sunday, Josh Allen's Bills team somehow came back to win 41-40 with a game-winning field goal in the final seconds.
