Ravens’ Matthew Judon ejected for hitting official during Steelers scuffle, despite doubts of intent

Ravens pass-rusher Matthew Judon was being held back by a Baltimore staffer during the second quarter of Sunday’s game. As Judon tried to break free, he swung his right arm and hit a nearby official. 

Contacting the official in such a manner resulted in an easy ejection of Judon from Baltimore’s Week 8 game against the Steelers. While the intent of Judon’s act likely wouldn’t have impacted the ejection — making contact with an official usually results in ejections — the initial reaction was that Judon may not have been attempting to hit the ref.

Announced in the stadium by the head referee, Judon’s ejection was for “intentionally contacting” an official. It’s the 11th ejection of the 2020 NFL season. The NFL rulebook does not list any official punishment with the words “intentionally contacting,” and no search of the word “contacting” finds a section involving contact with officials.

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Judon has been listed as a linebacker and defensive ends through various portions of his career, but his main role is to get after the quarterback. He has 2.0 sacks in 2020, and he had a career-high 9.5 sacks in 2019. Judon had yet to record a stat Sunday against Pittsburgh before his ejection. Fines could follow Judon’s ejection, depending on the NFL’s postgame determination.

The Ravens had already lost one veteran from Sunday’s rivalry game when Ronnie Stanley injured his ankle and was almost immediately ruled out. Baltimore will have to pull out a close contest without one of its most-trusted pass-rushers in the second half. 

In addition to the CBS broadcast’s announcers speculating that Judon’s hit likely wasn’t intentional, Twitter provided plenty of thoughts.