On Sunday night, a video showing Bengals linebacker Germaine Pratt’s instant reaction to his team’s 23-20 loss to the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game went viral.
Following defensive end Joseph Ossai’s late hit on Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, Pratt was seen entering the locker room while yelling, “Why the fuck did you touch the quarterback?” In the dying seconds, Harrison Butker’s game-winning field goal was made possible by the penalty, which handed the Chiefs 15 yards.
Pratt clarified the reason for his outburst in a comment on an Instagram post that featured video of the unpleasant incident that prompted it.
For likes and views on social media, people would publish anything, Pratt wrote. “My sentiments are sometimes raw and true. Sometimes things will be spoken in anger if you love something as much as I do. But I am aware of the kind of teammate I am. What kind of a man I am, too. No love is lost, I harmed you. Keep in mind that some people will hate you, will criticize you, will attempt to break you, but I will continue to maintain my ground.
The Bengals’ head coach Zac Taylor, defensive tackle BJ Hill, and others were eager to point out that Ossai’s performance was not the only factor in their Sunday loss and that they would have plenty of time to consider everything that went wrong before playing again.