Baltimore Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith is no stranger to being fined by the NFL, and he may be hearing from the league again this week.
The Ravens’ 36-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday was ugly enough on its own. Baltimore lost quarterback Lamar Jackson to a right thumb injury on its first play from scrimmage. Then backup Tyler Huntley went down with a toe injury in the first half, leaving undrafted rookie Joe Fagnano to make his NFL debut.
However, one of the biggest talking points of the game came before any of that on Buffalo’s opening drive.
Roquan Smith Got Away With Dirty Play on Josh Allen
The Bills marched down to the goal line on their first possession, where the Ravens stopped Allen on third down.
Buffalo went back to the QB sneak on fourth down, and Allen pushed across the goal line for the touchdown. But as he did, video shows Smith grabbing Allen’s facemask and yanking his head backward with a lot of force (video here). The play wasn’t flagged.
Allen stayed in the game and didn’t appear to be hurt. He finished with two touchdown passes and a rushing score in the blowout win. But the video looked bad enough that Bills fans and podcasters didn’t wait long to call for the league to step in.
“There’s dirty players, then there is Roquan Smith,” Dave Myers of the “Built in Buffalo” podcast said. “Dude should be suspended for trying to pull Josh Allen’s head off.”
“And scientists need to look into Josh Allen’s neck to see how the h*** he didn’t get decapitated here,” another user said.
If Smith were to be disciplined, he would likely receive a $17,911 fine because it would be his second offense this season.
Bills Fans Want Smith Suspended
“Roquan Smith is the dirtiest player in the NFL. He should be suspended for this dirty move. Just nasty,” one post read.
“Dirty [expletive]… he’s Vontaze Burfict all over again,” another fan wrote.
A third fan brought up last season’s opener, when Smith “dove at a helmetless Josh Allen, who was lying on the turf after a play.”
Ravens fans came to Smith’s defense, arguing the Bills are asking for it by running Allen on QB sneaks.
“You are running a rugby play and crying that your QB is getting hit in a contact sport! Grow up,” one fan wrote.
“Josh Allen does silly stuff and is protected by the rules. He gets hurt; it’s on him,” another fan added.
Though Smith wasn’t flagged for the Shough incident, he was still fined after the fact. So, Smith could be hit in the wallet again when the NFL announces its Week 8 fines on Saturday.
Smith Did Almost the Exact Same Thing Earlier This Year
What makes things worse for Smith is that it’s not the first time this season he’s done this exact move to a quarterback on a goal-line sneak.
Back in Week 2, New Orleans Saints QB Tyler Shough scored the game-winning touchdown on a fourth-down sneak with 1:28 left in a 24-17 Saints win in Baltimore. Officials missed a facemask by Smith on that play too. The NFL later admitted the error by fining him $11,941 (video here).
That’s just the latest entry on a long list of fines Smith has accrued during his career. He’s also been penalized for a horse-collar tackle against the Chiefs in 2024 ($16,883 fine), a facemask on Rams tight end Davis Allen in 2023 ($10,927 fine), and roughing the passer against the Lions in 2023 ($16,391 fine).
Smith has never been suspended or ejected, though. That’s why what he did to Shough earlier this year could work against him.
“It’s not even the first time that Roquan Smith has tried to take an opposing quarterback’s head and put it on his mantle up by his fireplace, as he tried to do with Tyler Shough before, too,” one X user pointed out.
Ravens LB Facing Calls for Suspension After What He Did to Bills QB Josh Allen