Saints' Payton Turner Denies Claims That He Spat On Concussed DeVonta Smith

New Orleans Saints' defensive end Payton Turner is denying claims that he spat on DeVonta Smith as the Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver lied injured on the field.

During the fourth quarter of Sunday afternoon's game in New Orleans, Smith took a big hit from Saints defensive tackle Khristian Boyd that knocked him unconscious. As the wideout was lying motionless on the ground with his helmet off, cameras caught what appeared to be Turner spitting at him.

The video went viral, and Eagles fans were incensed.

After the game, Turner attempted to clear his name.

"Y’all reaching," he replied to the original post on X. "I wouldn’t ever do sum like that. Bless y’all."

We'd like to give the guy the benefit of the doubt. Spitting on another human being is vile, especially when that human being is lying injured on the ground. But the video doesn't look great for Turner.

Smith ultimately left the game with a concussion. After the game, some Eagles players came to the defense of their teammate, calling the hit "dirty" and a "cheap shot."

"Man, that's the dirtiest sh*t I ever saw in football, bro," Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson said. "Y'all obviously saw forward progression was stopped. For them to take a cheap shot on one of our key players, it goes to show what type of team that is. They're front-runners."

Philly left tackle Jordan Mailata, who pushed Boyd to the ground following the play, weighed in, too.

"Did I think it was dirty? Yeah," Mailata said. "Did I think it was intentional? No — ah, I don't f*cking know. I've got to watch it. I'm conflicted, as you can tell. I hope Smitty is OK."

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith is injured on a tackle by New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Khristian Boyd.

(Stephen Lew-Imagn Images)

The Eagles won the game 15-12. Both teams are now 2-1 on the season.