December 16, 2023
Big Dom DiSandro won't be seen on the Eagles' sideline for the final stretch of the schedule.
Per the Associated Press' Rob Maaddi, the NFL banned the team's chief security officer from the sideline for the rest of the regular season, though according to Maaddi's sources, he will be able to return for the playoffs.
DiSandro is also still allowed to travel with the team and perform all other work duties, so he will be in Seattle on Monday night, though likely from the tunnels only as he did last week against Dallas.
In the third quarter of the Eagles' December 3 home game against the San Francisco 49ers at Lincoln Financial Field – a 42-19 loss – 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw grabbed and slammed Eagles receiver DeVonta Smith to the ground well after the play was over by Philadelphia's sideline, and the whole team took exception.
Smith immediately got up and right into Greenlaw's face as other players and coaches began to swarm in. DiSandro, who was right in front of the fray, stepped in to separate Greenlaw from Smith while the officials were on their way to do the same.
Greenlaw responded with a hand to DiSandro's face, tempers flared even further, and yellow flags went flying. Greenlaw was charged with a personal foul and ejected (later fined too), and DiSandro was also told to leave the sideline but did so walking to the tunnel with a standing ovation from the home crowd as a long-building fan favorite.
The immediate fallout on the Eagles' side, however, was that DiSandro was barred from the sideline for the following week's game at Dallas last Sunday night, and will now stay that for the final four games of the regular season.
"At the end of the day, it's high emotions," Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham said after DiSandro's ejection and the loss to San Francisco a couple of weeks back. "We gotta make sure that we always control those. That's what we talked about this week. We knew it was gonna be one of those types of games. I mean, it was chippy and both of them got ejected, so at the end of the day, I trust Dom. I know Dom. This is the first time I've ever seen him get thrown out of a game, but it just so happened that, like I said, it was one of those emotional games.
"There were words being said. I think he said something and then [Greenlaw] tried to swing on him. I mean, at the end of the day, it's one of those things where you gotta control yourself. I hate that both of them got ejected, but that's part of the game, and I know that Dom – if you know Dom, you know he ain't putting hands on people. I know that he's gonna learn from this too."
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