Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh explained why he put his hand on the throat of Baltimore Ravens quarterback Ryan Mallett during the fourth quarter of Thursday’s night’s 40-0 loss.
“He came at me,” Suh said. “Tried to attack me. And I’m protecting myself. Regret what? No, I’m never going to regret protecting myself.”
Suh was penalized for unnecessary roughness in the third quarter when he pushed down hard on a lineman’s arm down at the end of a play.
Suh was also penalized for unnecessary roughness in the fourth quarter, though that penalty was declined.
On the same play, defensive lineman William Hayes was penalized for unnecessary roughness after he appeared to poke at a players’ eye.
Suh defended Kiko Alonso, who was penalized for an unnecessary roughness penalty in the second quarter, when he knocked out Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco with a blow to the quarterback’s head as he slid.
“I didn’t see it, but I know Kiko’s not a dirty player,” Suh said.
As for the overall chippiness in the game, Suh said: “I don’t know about all that. I am always going to play hard, no matter what the score is.”
Miami coach Adam Gase added: “We have to keep our composure better than we did tonight.”
