Dre Greenlaw ejection: What NFL officials said about 49ers LB

In the second quarter of a recent NFL game, San Francisco 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw was ejected following a controversial incident. Greenlaw, with just six minutes and thirty seconds left on the clock, was flagged for striking Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold after he went out of bounds. While the play appeared to be a close call, the subsequent actions of Greenlaw led to his dismissal.

During the aftermath of the initial play, a scuffle ensued on the Seattle sideline, resulting in Greenlaw headbutting Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones, who was not wearing a helmet at the time. This reckless act did not injure Jones physically, but it clearly violated league rules and warranted an ejection. The NFL's Vice President of Instant Replay, Mark Butterworth, confirmed to ESPN's Brady Henderson that Greenlaw was disqualified due to a headbutt on a player without a helmet.

The NFL implemented a rule this year allowing for ejections even when no flag is down, but this specific case involved Greenlaw's headbutt on an unprotected player on the sideline. Despite the heat of the moment, headbutting an unhelmmed player is a dangerous act that cannot be tolerated by the league. San Francisco's defense managed to recover from Greenlaw's absence, and the team was keen to play without him in the near future.