Thursday’s joint practice between the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Rams ended early after a scuffle broke out during a special teams play, much to the disgust of Raiders coach Jon Gruden.
Multiple scuffles broke out during the practice, which was ultimately called 45 minutes early as coaches failed to calm things down. Reporters on the scene said punches were thrown and the situation flared up several times after initially being calmed down.
You’re not gonna believe this but there was a big old brawl at Raiders-Rams practice. Saw some punches. pic.twitter.com/K6ZVI1R5C4
— Greg Beacham (@gregbeacham) August 19, 2021
This fight had been broken up twice only to flare up again. People being held back. This is ugly. pic.twitter.com/207QULgqa1
— Lindsey Thiry (@LindseyThiry) August 19, 2021
This is one of the risks of joint practices, as things can sometimes get out of hand and tempers can flare too much. Whatever the case, Gruden described the situation as “stupidity” and “child’s play.”
Jon Gruden on Raiders-Rams scuffle that ended practice early:
“It was two guys in a special teams period and then it was a lot of trash talking that escalated. It’s just sickening really, it’s just stupidity. I’m done with that. It’s just child’s play to me.”#CHILDSPLAY
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) August 19, 2021
This was the second day of joint practices between the two sides, and there were already some fireworks on Wednesday. That may have set the stage for Thursday’s events. The two teams are set to play a preseason game against each other Saturday, so there’s certainly a chance this flares up again.
