Needless to say, Buccaneers defensive tackle Brian Price was not coach Raheem Morris' favorite person Sunday.
Shades of what Mike Singletary did to Vernon Davis a few years ago in San Francisco, Morris sent Price to the locker room after a personal-foul call late in the third quarter of the team's 38-19 whooping by the Panthers.
Morris was already salty about Tampa Bay losing its sixth straight after a 4-2 start, and Price only made things worse -- especially for himself.
"Yes, I sent him to the locker room," Morris said. "I told him go home. (Expletive). Yeah. Because it's foolish, it's selfish to your teammates, to everybody in your organization, to your fans. That's terrible. That's just selfish behavior to get a 15-yard penalty, in that situation, when that's all we talk about, when that's all we discuss. You just can't do that to your team. ...
"When you give up a penalty, after a third-and-15, those are things that are not smart, not fair to anybody on the football team. Not fair to anybody that's coaching that football team. Those things are unacceptable."
What Price did, exactly, to get flagged is still a mystery, as the Fox broadcast didn't show a replay. It was clear, though, that Price was in the middle of a scuffle between several players after the whistle. Price's agent, Chuck Price (no relation), said it was nothing more severe than typical post-play shoving.
"He said, 'I got into it after the play. I didn't throw a punch,' " Chuck Price told the St. Petersburg Times, recounting his conversation with his client. "It was just one of those things where he had the harder push. There wasn't any blow to the head or anything like that."
Whatever the case, it's clear Morris isn't thrilled about Bucs' collapse this season after a 2010 in which they showed promise. Consider Brian Price an example of this.
