The Cincinnati Bengals and Joe Burrow suffered a disappointing loss in the final minutes of the AFC Championship game. It seemed like the game was going to be pushed to overtime when the defense of the Bengals made a grave error. While Burrow was being compared to legends of pro sports, the defense of the Bengals seemed to be having some internal conflict. A video of a heated exchange between linebacker Germaine Pratt and Joseph Ossai went viral.
Twitter saw a shocking video go viral after the Bengals’ loss. It showed Pratt yelling at his defensive end for an error he committed that might have cost them the game. Although it seemed like it was in the heat of the moment, fans had an intense reaction to the way Pratt behaved.
A defensive error by the Bengals
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In the fourth quarter, the clock was winding down as the score was 20 apiece. However, after Joseph Ossai was flagged for unnecessary roughness on Mahomes, the Bengals conceded the pigskin to the Chiefs. The Chiefs were able to score a field goal off of this error, thereby winning the game. Furthermore, after the loss, the LB went on to get frustrated with his defensive end. This video went viral on Twitter.
Pratt, the Bengals’ LB had some harsh words for his teammate. He yelled at his teammate in front of everyone, the media included. His outburst went on to become absolutely viral on Twitter.
"Why the f–k you touch the QB!?"
Bengals LB Germaine Pratt HEATED with teammate Joseph Ossai over costly roughing the passer call 😬
(via @KatieKapustaTV)pic.twitter.com/ivfD1JbjqF
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 30, 2023
Furthermore, fans did not hold back with their reactions to how Pratt spoke to his teammate. One fan expressed how negative Pratt seemed.
Horrible teammate.
— Chris Palmer (@ChrisPalmerNBA) January 30, 2023
Furthermore, a fan also spoke about the little contribution Pratt himself had.
Pratt missed a couple tackles this game. Hate this type of teammates smh
— Buttcrack Sports (@ButtCrackSports) January 30, 2023
Furthermore, even prominent entities like Jesse Washington had something to say in the defense of the defensive tight end.
my heart is heavy for Joseph Ossai. he’s 22 years old & put his whole being into winning this game but arrived at the biggest moment of his life one second too slow. if you raged, gloated or said “how could he” think if this was your son, brother or friend.pic.twitter.com/W6YFGUrVNO
— Jesse Washington (@jessewashington) January 30, 2023
Additionally, a fan critiqued the linebacker’s leadership.
This ain’t it, leaders ain’t supposed to do this shit, a leader helps his boys get up not knock them down
— . (@SavTheRJFan) January 30, 2023
However, some fans agreed with Pratt’s outburst.
He's right. Ossai cost them the game
— Justin Rose (@JustinRose_90) January 30, 2023
However, most fans shared their opinions about how Pratt acted.
He was already beating himself up on the sideline as a teammate you don’t gotta pound him deeper into the ground… he should be lifting him up. Especially since his D Was pretty much what kept them that close in the game
— pee diddy 💙🏁 (@bigmosaicc) January 30, 2023
While Ossai did commit an error during the final minutes of the game, his defensive contribution throughout the game was very valuable.
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Ossai’s contribution throughout the game
While the offense of the Bengals struggled, the defensive effort worked well. While Burrow did not have his best game with only 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions, the defensive effort tried its hardest to keep the Bengals in the running. Ossai had 3 tackles and 2 assisted tackles that were well placed and kept the Bengals in the game. Interestingly, Pratt only had 2 tackles. However, he did have 5 assisted tackles.
It seems like the tight end did commit a grave error. However, he also did perform very well for his team. The way he was yelled at did become a bone of contention for some fans, as some believed that he deserved it. It only remains to be seen how Pratt himself will respond to questions about his frustrated outburst at his own teammate.
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