Discover the amazing events of NFL Brawls and Fights

Video: NFL Best Brawls and Fights.

Three skirmishes broke out Tuesday evening between the Dallas Cowboys and St. Louis Rams at the Cowboys’ camp site in Oxnard, Calif. The third escalation, which included a punch to the face of Dallas all-pro wideout Dez Bryant, arguably the team’s best player, curtailed the session by a half hour.

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“It’s unfortunate. There’s no excuse for it. You can’t blame it on anybody. It just happened. One thing led to another and it happened. It’s unfortunate. Fortunately, nobody got hurt,” said Rams coach Jeff Fisher.

“There’s no place for that in our game. There’s no place for that from the standpoint of being role models in this game and representing this game for kids. There’s no place. That’s not how this game goes, so we’re sorry about that, and I know (Cowboys coach) Jason (Garrett) will echo the same thing.”

But not 24 hours later, tempers rose elsewhere.

Miami Dolphins defensive end Olivier Vernon and Carolina Panthers tackle Michael Oher briefly exchanged punches Wednesday morning at Panthers camp in Spartanburg, S.C. There were also heated moments when the Philadelphia Eagles hosted the Baltimore Ravens.

“I think It’s a tough environment to put guys in. If you brought Alabama down to LSU and scrimmaged, there’d be a fight every day,” said Cincinnati Bengals tackle Andrew Whitworth. “To put them out on the field with no referees, really … guys kind of almost feel like in that scenario, that’s when they can get their cheap shots in.”

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Earlier this month, the Houston Texans and Washington Redskins concluded three days together in Richmond, Va., with a free-for-all that almost seemed inevitable given the mounting tension that was documented on HBO’s Hard Knocks.

Does such evidence point to a worrisome trend?

“Oh I don’t think there is any doubt,” said Arizona Cardinals coach Bruce Arians, who said Wednesday that some coaches “breed” fights while others tolerate and expect them.

“It’s not tolerated here,” said Arians, who has not yet participated in a joint practice since Arizona hired him in 2013. “There is no place in the game for it. Coaches that believe that, they need to get new jobs.”

There’s also the nightmare scenario: fan involvement. The Cowboys and Rams fought near spectators Tuesday, a year after a fan took a swing at a Dallas player when the Oakland Raiders mixed it up with the Cowboys near a fenceline.

“It’s organized chaos. I think both teams are teetering on being under control, but out of control at the same time,” said Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins. “It’s this real thin ice. But I think cooler heads prevail. We’re all professionals. We’re out here trying to compete. Then we have that understanding and mutual respect for each other that we’re trying to get work done.”

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Fortunately, no major injuries have occurred from the recent fisticuffs. NFL executive vice president Troy Vincent circulated a memo to all 32 teams last week reminding clubs that fights are not allowed in games or practice, whether between opponents or teammates. (Bryant and Panthers quarterback Cam Newton have been involved in intrasquad fights this month, and New York Jets quarterback Geno Smith had his jaw broken when he was sucker punched in the locker room.)

“These rules are in place for the protection and safety of our players and to keep them on the field,” Vincent said in the memo according to the league’s website. “As professionals, no matter how emotional the game becomes, there is nothing that should resort to fighting.”

But imagine the fallout if any player was seriously hurt in a joint practice, much less a star like Bryant or Texans defensive end J.J. Watt. Yet the league is apparently content to let the teams legislate anything occurring between the lines.

“These have always been club matters,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy wrote in an e-mail to USA TODAY Sports. “If a fight occurs off the football field, it would fall under the personal conduct policy.”

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Everyone seems cognizant that the figurative black eyes that pop up on ESPN and NFL Network highlights may be as harmful as the literal ones that have largely been avoided thus far.

“We’re not here to fight. We’re not here to do the things that we see on TV,” Rams defensive end Chris Long said Tuesday. “Some things are really tough. You know, all it takes is one real, bad scuffle and everybody’s involved. So it happens. We have respect for them. They have respect for us. It happened.”

“These are grown men that have been competing all of their lives, and now you pull them in a situation where it doesn’t take much to get that out of whack,” said general manager Ted Thompson of the Green Bay Packers, who have turned down practice requests from other teams.

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Still, there are plenty of reasons why teams continue to combine forces. Joint practices break up the monotony of camp, give players fresh adversaries against whom to test their skills, allow coaches the ability to set ground rules – to the extent they’re followed – and provide all-important film to evaluate the roster in an era when practice time has been limited under the CBA to protect players’ health.

Just this week, 12 teams have paired off.

“Our biggest thing here is we want to have fun and practice with each other, but we want to keep everyone safe,” Indianapolis Colts defensive lineman Arthur Jones said Wednesday as his team welcomed the Chicago Bears to their facility.

“It’s not the WWE. You’re one play away from getting injured.”

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2015/08/19/dallas-cowboys-st-louis-rams-dez-bryant-joint-practices-brawls-washington-redskins-houston-texans/32004477/