Shocking Details Reveal Who The Ball Boy Who Wanted To Fight Josh Hines-Allen Really Is
This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.
Josh Hines-Allen’s sideline scuffle over a football didn’t fade quietly after Sunday. In fact, new developments are still being reported.
The Jaguars star wanted the ball from Travis Hunter’s first career interception. A team staffer wasn’t ready to hand it over. What started as a tug-of-war over a souvenir turned into a shove and a swipe caught on camera.
Now there’s a twist nobody saw coming. The staffer at the center of it all wasn’t even working for the Jaguars.
TMZ Reports The Staffer Actually Worked For New England
TMZ Sports’ Michael Babcock revealed having been told on Monday that the ball boy was a Patriots employee.
A staffer with no loyalty to Jacksonville had less reason to hand over a keepsake meant for a Jaguars player. That alone could explain a lot about why the standoff played out the way it did.
Neither team has publicly confirmed the staffer’s employer. So it’s worth treating as a single-source claim for now, even if it comes from a credible name in the space.
The Jaguars have offered their own take on where things stand. Coach Liam Coen addressed it this week, as Yahoo Sports reported. He said the situation between the two sides appears resolved. He couldn’t confirm whether Hunter actually ended up with the real ball. Jacksonville’s equipment manager, George Pellicer, stepped in during the original scuffle to help defuse the situation.
The Underlying Footage Still Raises Questions
Hunter’s pick capped an eventful return from a torn LCL that cut his rookie year short. The Jaguars went on to blow the Patriots out 35-6. It wasn’t even the only strange moment from that blowout. Trevor Lawrence left fans confused with an odd decision of his own near the goal line.
Whoever the staffer worked for, the video itself hasn’t gotten any less strange with repeat viewings. The ball boy shoved Hines-Allen first, according to multiple accounts of the clip. Hines-Allen then went for the ball in a motion resembling the punch defenders use to force fumbles as the ball boy walked away.
The staffer could probably teach the players a thing or two about ball retention, as he was able to hold on to it.
None of that stopped the sideline scuffle from overshadowing most of the actual football. Neither Hines-Allen nor the Jaguars has commented publicly on the Patriots employee claim. Given how quickly new details have surfaced this week, that’s unlikely to be the last word on it.
