The 5 Best/Worst Sports Fights Ever

This season held so much promise for the New York Jets. A revamped defense, more talent on offense, and a new Head Coach/General Manager tandem with a refreshing philosophy. Then this week, the team announced that incumbent starting QB Geno Smith will miss up to 10 weeks with a broken jaw after a fight with linebacker IK Enemkpali. It was learned that the fight was over a $600 plane ticket, and that Geno Smith was being “smug” and “provoked” Enemkpali into delivering the ultimate Haymaker. The feisty linebacker was released, and Smith is scheduled to seek a second opinion before deciding on surgery.

This situation begs a lot of questions about the team and it’s leadership. Instead of answering those questions, I’m going to take on the subconscious inquiry that is “does this happen a lot?” The answer is yes, and some of them are as stupid as a plane ticket. However, some of them turn into career-ending and life-threatening situations. I ranked the 5 most headline-worthy scuffles between teammates in recent sports history. As Apollo Creed said to Rocky Balboa, “Ain’t gonna’ be no rematch.”

5. Tony Allen vs. OJ Mayo: Back in 2011, these two players, who are actually friends, were playing on the Memphis Grizzlies together. Mayo reportedly owed about $7,500 to Allen from a card game that the two played. Mayo refused to pay, and went on to berate Allen’s game and personal life. After teammate Zach Randolph (who appears on this list shortly) tried to settle the argument, Allen decided he had enough and hit Mayo several times in the face, head, and shoulder. The one hook that Mayo threw was avoided by Allen, who put in one more shot to Mayo’s eye for good measure. The result: A black eye and bruised face for Mayo and a hefty fine for Allen. All because of a card game.

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Allen (9) and Mayo (32) on the court for Memphis.

4. Ruben Patterson vs. Zach Randolph/Qyntel Woods: The early 200’s Trail Blazers are infamous for their run-ins with the law (earning the nickname “Jail Blazers”), but this fight is especially mettlesome because of the way it went down. Ruben Patterson, a registered sex offender and domestic abuser, was arguing with rookie Qyntel Woods. In steps Randolph as peacemaker again, but this time it didn’t turn out so well. Randolph ended up punching Patterson square in the face. The result: A $100,00 fine for Randolph, and just 4 more years of NBA ball for Patterson, who has been arrested 3 times since his departure.

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Randolph (center) and Patterson (right).

3. Michael Westbrook vs. Stephen Davis: When they were teammates on the 1997 Redskins, Westbrook and Davis were caught on TV scuffling. It ended with Westbrook beating the living daylights out Davis. Reports later said that Davis used a homophobic slur towards Westbrook, who acted out against it. This left the impression that Westbrook was gay, which he has denied since. In fact, in an interview with ESPN back in 2008, Westbrook claimed that the whole story has been misreported for years. The result: A successful MMA career for Westbrook, who has stated that he doesn’t like hitting people in the face, and a good NFL career for Davis, who was a 3-time Pro Bowler and the NFC rushing champion in 1999 and 2001.

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Footage of the altercation between Westbrook and Davis.

2. Marcus Williams vs. Bill Romanowski: This altercation ended in Williams retiring from the NFL at the age of 27. In a practice drill, Romanowski put Williams on the ground, ripped his helmet off, and punched him in the face. He shattered Williams’ orbital bone and injured his brain. This forced Williams to retire, and he sued Romanowski for $3.4 million. Williams claimed Romanowski was suffering from “roid rage”, and the judge awarded $340,000 on behalf of Williams. The result: A $7,500 fine for Romanowski, a dead dream for Williams, and a 2-year long lawsuit.

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The damage done to Williams.

1. Gilbert Arenas vs. Javaris Crittenton: It’s never good when teammates draw guns on each other in the locker room. The story goes like this: Crittenton was angry at Arenas, who refused to pay a gambling debt (the same card game that gave OJ Mayo a black eye courtesy of Tony Allen earlier in the list). This sparked a feud that continued for several days, when ultimately both sides drew unloaded pistols at each other in the locker room on Christmas Eve. Luckily, neither player shot and no one was hurt. The FBI got involved, and this whole situation turned into a huge mess for the Wizards. The result: Crittenton and Arenas were both suspended for the rest of the 2009-2010 season. Arenas “enjoyed” 3 more fruitless seasons in the NBA before going to China, and Crittenton was overseas the season after the incident.

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Ron Sachs/Rex / Rex USA ( 623635a )  Washington Wizards guards Javaris Crittenton (8) and Gilbert Arenas (0)  Washington Wizards basketball team practice at the Verizon Center in Washington DC, America - 31 Dec 2009

Crittenton and Arenas. Photo by Ron Sachs