I'm Sorry!
Broncos defender begs for forgiveness for taking off chunk of Matt Schaub's ear
DENVER — Their quarterback was down on the field, his helmet knocked clean off, blood gushing from his ear. Frankly, the Houston Texans were looking for someone to hit.
Sports Authority Field at Mile High stood on the verge of breaking into mayhem.
Then, fourth-year Broncos linebacker Joe Mays — the man who laid out Matt Schaub with an illegal hit — rushed up to the Texans offensive linemen, offering a mea culpa.
"I felt fine, you know," Schaub said. "I just lost a little piece of my ear."
"We were all looking around wondering what was going on," Texans left tackle Duane Brown said. "And their guy came up to us basically asking for forgiveness, telling us that really wasn't his intent. He was trying to do this, not that and . . ."
I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me!
"Yeah, he tried to explain what happened," Texans center Chris Myers said. "We're still pissed — our quarterback is on the ground, bleeding. You never want to see that as offensive lineman. It's unacceptable.
"He tried to explain it, but it is what it is."
Schaub ended up missing only one play But he lost a little chunk of his ear, one that ended up in that Mile High grass.
"I felt fine, you know," Schaub said. "I just lost a little piece of my ear."
Well, if that's all. What's a minor body part for a 290-yard, four-touchdown passing day — and most importantly a 31-25 road win over a Denver Broncos team that many NFL experts picked to go to the Super Bowl before the season.
Pull off a hit that's sure to draw a hefty NFL fine by Monday, plead for forgiveness and still get beat? Joe Mays didn't exactly have what you'd call a stellar Sunday.