Alabama football’s Rashaan Evans saw his night end early.
There were plenty of Alabama football players to watch on the first Monday Night Football of the year. One defensive superstar from the Crimson Tide was Tennessee Titans linebacker Rashaan Evans. Unfortunately for the Titans, Evans saw his night end early.
Rashaan Evans was ejected from the game for a personal foul penalty early in the first half. He threw a punch against former Michigan tight end Jake Butt, which forced referees to disqualify him for the rest of the game.
Evans is entering his third NFL season with the Titans, and he is expected to be a leader and cog of this defense. Mike Vrabel will always rely on his defense to win games, and Evans is a pivotal piece of that in 2020.
Evans’ loss was immediately apparent in this Monday Night Football matchup against the Denver Broncos. Denver started attacking the middle of the field with their tight ends, and TE Noah Fant led the way with five catches and a touchdown for the Broncos.
Evans took pride in his physicality with Alabama football. At inside linebacker, Evans was a game-wrecker for the Crimson Tide in both the running game and in coverage. Tennessee drafted Evans mostly due to his physicality. However, that does not justify his actions against Jake Butt.
When you watch the punch thrown by Evans, it seems obvious that he did not wish to physically harm Butt. Although he popped him in the facemask, he did not turn it into a full-blown fistfight. It was just one swing when emotions ran too high that got him kicked out.
The Titans will have to find a way to overcome his absence if they want to end the first week of football with a 1-0 record. Without his physicality and leadership, things got a lot tougher for Tennessee.