OAKLAND – Chris Harris Jr. claims the brawl that broke out early in the Raiders' 21-14 victory over Denver started a play before it became a melee. The Broncos defensive back said receiver Michael Crabtree sucker punched him while blocking on a run play.
Harris' wind got knocked out. He was angry leaving the field, yelling at officials and the Raiders sideline following the offense.
"I've never seen that in the NFL," Harris said. "He came out wanting to fight. He didn't want to play football."
According to safety Justin Simmons, cornerback Aqib Talib, "took that personal."
A huge fight consequently broke out on the next play. Crabtree and Talib locked horns during another run – those guys have a beef we'll explain later – ended up going to the ground. Talib ripped Crabtree's chain off in the exchange, and the two ended up fighting on the Broncos sideline.
A bunch of Broncos joined in, and Raiders offensive players defended their guy. Crabtree and Talib threw punches. Both guys got ejected. So did Gabe Jackson, who made contact with an official while bull rushing Denver players getting after Crabtree. Suspensions are possible for all three.
Talib has to walk through the Raiders sideline to reach the Denver locker room after being ejected. Tensions remained sky high, so running back Marshawn Lynch oddly escorted Talib to the tunnel without incident.
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Crabtree watched the game from a suite, and was not available for comment after the game. Talib did not speak with the press.
Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio wasn't thrilled with the exchange.
"Bottom line is that we can't afford to lose one of our top receivers and then our starting guard because he went over there to help his buddy," Del Rio said. "We can't let two guys get tossed like that. I will address it as best I can, but I count on my guys to do the right things and keep their composure. Can't get tossed. It's just too much."
This one was personal. The Harris shot came out of the blue. The Crabtree-Talib beef is a different story.
Talib ripped Crabtree's chain on purpose during last year's regular-season finale. Crabtree said he "made a business decision" and didn't retaliate – an AFC West title and a performance bonus was on the line -- but animosity remained 11 months later.
When Talib ripped Crabtree's chain again, it was on. That was only evident upon review, and most players didn't know it happened.
"Did Crabtree have another chain on?" Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall said. "Oh, wow. Talib's a bully, man."
The Broncos jumped on Crabtree quickly. The Raiders receiver was severely outnumbered early in the brawl, and his helmet got ripped off at the bottom of a pile. Talib took a swing. Crabtree took one as well, and got Talib's face through his helmet.
Several others got involved, especially Raiders offensive linemen trying to protect their guy on the wrong sideline.
"It went to another level," quarterback Derek Carr said. "We could all feel that. It wasn't a push-and-shove kind of thing. …It's football. It's chippy. It's a violent game. My hope is that, whatever happens, it stays here. …Hopefully we can move on and be better next time."
