Some of the Philadelphia Eagles said they took pleasure in putting particular venom into their hits on Dallas Cowboys star Greg Hardy on Sunday, after photos emerged of the domestic violence incident involving his ex-girlfriend.
“Any time I had a chance to put a little extra mustard on a block, I tried,” Eagles offensive tackle Lane Johnson told the Philadelphia Daily News. “He wasn’t all that emotional in the game. I guess he is in other games. I don’t know if the stuff got to him on the news, but he kind of seemed out of it a little bit.”
The NFL suspended Hardy for 10 games (later reduced to four on appeal) after his former partner Nicole Holder said he has assaulted her. Although charges against Hardy have since been expunged the photos released by Deadspin on Friday appeared to corroborate Holder’s version of events.
“I’m glad he didn’t have a good day,” Eagles lineman Jason Kelce told the Philadelphia Daily News “It’s a joke a guy like that is able to play this quickly.
“Three people I have zero respect for in this world. People who hit women, who molest children, and rapists.”
Hardy recorded the Cowboys’ only sack during their defeat to the Eagles but was far from his best. The Dallas owner, Jerry Jones, reiterated his commitment to Hardy on Sunday night, saying the player deserves a second chance.
“Greg has a commitment to us. He has a commitment to do the right thing. We expect him to do the right thing,” Jones said. “He has a commitment to his teammates and our team. The way it’s set up in the NFL relative to behavior, if in fact we wanted to give Greg the second chance and you lose that in the NFL if you don’t do the right things.”
Kelce and Johnson are not the only players to express their displeasure with Hardy. On Sunday, Seattle Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett said he would not want Hardy as a team-mate.
“I’m a father of three daughters so any man that beats a woman, I think that’s hard for me to swallow but the Cowboys did make their choice [to sign Hardy],” Bennett said told the NFL Network. “[The Cowboys] have had a bunch of players before that had a couple things. As a team-mate, I’m not sure I would want him in the locker room, especially as a distraction when you’re already losing. It’s one of those things that would have to be up to the organization.”
The Cowboys’ defeat on Sunday was their sixth in succession – the team’s worst run of results in 26 years.
