Carolina Panthers wide receiver Xavier Legette and Cleveland Browns safety Rayshawn Jenkins were ejected for fighting during Friday night's NFL preseason game at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.
It happened a little over halfway through the first quarter with the game still scoreless. The Panthers had the ball on the Browns 37 yard line with 2nd and 4. Legette and Jenkins were blocking each other as Panthers quarterback Bryce Young handed off to running back Chubba Hubbard for a run up the middle for no gain. Legette and Jenkins stayed locked up with each other as the play was ending. It seemed that Legette took offense to Jenkins continuing to block him for so long, so he yanked his jersey collar and started throwing haymakers.
As Jenkins started to fight back, Legette went down to his knees and tried to wrap up Jenkins' legs to bring him down to the ground as Jenkins tried to back away from him. In response, Jenkins grabbed the back of Legette's helmet and ripped it off as he finally broke free of Legette's grip. Referees and other players stepped in to separate them.
Here's the @wcnc angle of the fight between Xavier Legette and Rayshawn Jenkins that led to their ejection from tonight's #Panthers vs. #Browns preseason game pic.twitter.com/9vdUx3sAyQ
— Danielle Stein (@Danielle_Stein9) August 9, 2025
As a result, both players headed to the locker room early before either could log any stats in the game. Legette was in no mood to celebrate as he apologized on X afterwards for his behavior. Nothing good can come from fighting in the NFL, and based on precedent, both players may be receiving fines.
As far as the rest of the game, the Panthers finished their offensive drive with a touchdown, but the Browns went on to beat the Panthers 30-10.
Moonlighting as a blogger to pursue my interest and enjoyment of sports. Former high school and Division I athlete (now a "retired" family man) that loves watching and discussing all sports. Follow me on Twitter (@HoldoutSports).
