Bengals' BJ Hill Stands Beside Joseph Ossai, Defends Emotional Teammate After Late Hit On Patrick Mahomes In AFC Title Game
Moments after Joseph Ossai committed one of the worst penalties in NFL playoff history he was hounded by the media at his locker. He wasn't standing there alone, however, teammate BJ Hill was standing tall right next to him, defending him after his boneheaded mistake.
With 17 seconds left in regulation and the score knotted at 20-20, Patrick Mahomes scrambled out of the pocket to the Bengals 42-yard line. As the Kansas City quarterback was out of bounds, Ossai shoved Mahomes in the back which resulted in an unnecessary roughness penalty moving the ball to the 27-yard line.
What would have been close to a 60-yard game-winning field goal attempt turned into a 45-yarder, which Harrison Butker drilled to punch Kansas City’s ticket into the Super Bowl.
Ossai was visibly emotional on the sideline after the play and had tears in his eyes standing in front of his locker.
As reporters asked him questions about his late hit on Mahomes, Hill stood by his side.
"Dumb question. Come on. He played his butt off the whole game," Hill told reporters. "Ask a different question."
"We’re one big family. It’s not fake. When the going gets tough, we lift each other up," Ossai explained. "I am just happy I’ve got these group of guys around me, supporting me right now, because it’s hard. There’s a bunch of guys in that room that I’m very thankful for, B.J. being one of them. A lot of older ones. They’ve done a good job taking us under their wings."
Ossai, a third-round pick out of Texas, did have a strong game against the Chiefs recording five tackles, including three solo, in the game. He had six solo tackles during the regular season.