RENTON, Wash. -- Many things can happen at the bottom of a pile. A finger to an eye, a twisted arm, a sucker punch, the list goes on.
But biting? At least according to Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers it does.
Rodgers accused Seattle Seahawks defensive end Darryl Tapp of biting him during the Packers' 27-17 victory last season. Tapp steadfastly denies that allegation.
"He's not my concern as far as if I bit him or not because it didn't happen," Tapp said. "I don't understand it. If he believes I bit him, send me the film, the exact play, and I'll apologize. I'm pretty sure it didn't happen -- pretty positive."
Not only did Tapp deny the incident, but he also seemed puzzled as to the timing of Rodgers' complaint.
"I know me personally, if someone were to bite me, I wouldn't wait a whole year to bring it up to somebody to get it handled," Tapp said.
During the fourth quarter of the Oct. 12, 2008 game in Seattle, Rodgers was sacked by Brian Russell, and Tapp ended up at the bottom of the pile as well. Rodgers drove Tapp's head into the turf as he got up from the pile and looked to his left arm, clearly bothered by something.
"It felt like a bee sting," Rodgers said Wednesday. "I was looking down, and he was biting my arm, so I had to get his teeth off my shoulder. Luckily, I was wearing a long sleeve."
Tapp was confounded as to how his mouth could have come anywhere near Rodgers' arm because the lineman wears a fully caged helmet. To illustrate his point, Tapp then put his helmet on, buckled the chin strap and tried to bite the arm of a volunteering reporter.
"Where is it going in at?" Tapp asked the throng of reporters. "Somebody tell me. Please tell me. Not only did he say I bit him through the helmet, I had a mouthpiece on and he had sleeves, and he ended up having a bruise for three months.
"I must have the strongest jaws of life. Somebody told me on Twitter I must have an extra mouth like in ("Alien")."
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Despite his fun-loving nature, Tapp obviously was still annoyed by Rodgers' accusation.
"That's my (reputation) you messing with," Tapp said. "My (reputation) in the league. So we'll get that taken care of."
Tapp has just two sacks this season for a defense that has consistently struggled to pressure quarterbacks. The Seahawks are tied for 22nd in the league with just 27 sacks.
Does Tapp plan on bringing up the biting accusation to Rodgers when they meet again Sunday in Green Bay?
"I'm gonna play ball as usual and try to get a win," Tapp said. "That's the most important thing. After we get a win and do what we need to do, then I might bring it up. First things first, we got to focus on handling these guys and trying to shut him down as a passer."
Notes:Seahawks coach Jim Mora said it's "very unlikely" that WR Nate Burleson (ankle) will play this Sunday. LB Aaron Curry (shoulder) is doubtful after not practicing Thursday. RB Julius Jones (rib) fully participated in practice and should play. ... WR Ben Obomanu (hamstring) didn't practice after his hamstring tightened. Mora said if Obomanu wasn't able to play Sunday, the Seahawks might need to make a roster move to add another wide receiver for the game. "We'd make that decision Saturday," Mora said. "We'd need to probably get another receiver up ready to go. It would be tough to go into a game with three." ... The Seahawks will hold a walkthrough practice Friday to give players and coaches a chance to be with their families on Christmas.
Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press
