Don’t tell these guys that Week 18 doesn’t matter.
49ers receiver Jauan Jennings and Cardinals cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting were both ejected for fighting in Sunday’s season finale between San Francisco and Arizona. It was the second fight in two plays for Jennings, who previously got into it with Cardinals cornerback Starling Thomas.
The ejection cost Jennings a shot at a career milestone. He fell 25 yards short of his first career 1,000-yard season after getting tossed in the second quarter. The game was of little consequence to both teams, which were eliminated from the playoffs before Sunday’s kickoff.
Run block turns into wrestling match in end zone
The second fight took place in the end zone on a run play as the Cardinals held a 10-3 lead. 49ers quarterback Joshua Dobbs ran six yards to set the 49ers up with second-and-goal at the Arizona 2-yard line. Jennings put a block on Murphy-Bunting that Murphy-Bunting did not appreciate.
As the play ended, Jennings and Murphy-Bunting remained engaged in the end zone on the opposite side of the field from the ball. Both fell to the turf, then proceeded to engage in a wrestling match after the whistle blew. One official threw a flag that neither player acknowledged.
As they continued to wrestle in the end zone, two officials did their best to pull the players apart. Eventually, they succeeded with the help of players from both teams.
Jennings’ and Murphy-Bunting’s days — and subsequently their respective seasons — were done. Officials issued offsetting personal fouls and ejected both players.
The post-whistle penalty was the second for Jennings in two plays. On the previous play, he got into it with Thomas. A physical block by Jennings was also the catalyst for this scuffle.
Jennings drove Thomas to the turf on a 9-yard run by Patrick Taylor Jr., and both continued to wrestle after the play was over.
That scuffle drew offsetting unsportsmanlike penalties on Jennings and Taylor, but did not result in ejections.
The second fight in two plays made for an easy call to eject Jennings. Murphy-Bunting wasn’t granted a warning as officials sought to reel things in.
Ejection stops Jennings short of 1,000 yards
For Jennings, the ejection meant falling short of a career milestone. The fourth-year receiver entered Sunday having tallied a career-high 923 yards on 70 receptions. Seven catches for 52 yards on an active day before his disqualification put him at 975 yards for the season.
And that’s where he’ll end. But he didn’t seem to mind. Jennings left the field with a smile on his face and stopped to hype up some 49ers fans that he found in the stands at Arizona’s State Farm Stadium.
