Detroit Lions: Jamie Collins ejection for head-butting official a bad start

Jamie Collins’ time with the Detroit Lions got off to an awful start with an ugly ejection.

Linebacker Jaime Collins was signed by the Detroit Lions earlier in the offseason in hopes of helping the Lions reach the playoffs while adding a veteran prescence. Unfortunately his start with Detroit will be remembered for one play and an ejection.

During the second quarter of the Lions’ eventual 27-23 loss to the Chicago Bears, Collins, in a mode of frustration, created contact with an official which looks like a headbutt.

The official immediately ejected Collins from the game.

According to Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk, Collins was demonstrating how he had been blocked and felt that he was blocked unfairly by members of the Bears offensive line when he made contact with the referee:

"“It appeared that Collins was trying to demonstrate that he had been blocked illegally, and making that demonstration by sticking the crown of his helmet into the referee’s chest. Obviously, that’s not the way to get the message across”."

At the time, the game was tied at 3-3 and the Bears were marching. Fortunately for Detroit, the drive on which Collins was ejected stalled for Chicago.

The Detroit Lions can’t be pleased by Jamie Collins’ early behavior.

Before this season, Jamie Collins had spent most of his NFL career as a member of the New England Patriots since being drafted out of Southern Miss in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft.

In 2014, Collins received a Super Bowl ring with New England in Super Bowl XLIX. Before the Super Bowl LI championship in 2016, he was traded from the Patriots to the then winless Cleveland Browns before signing a four-year, $50 million contract in 2017 with them.

Collins then returned to New England in 2019 and played sparingly throughout the season as the Patriots fell to the Titans in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. This past offseason, Collins signed a three year $30 million dollar contract with the Lions, stating that he hoped to bring leadership to the locker room, per Clutch Points:

"“I just feel like me being a veteran now, I can bring some veteran, some professional little things to get us over the top, and I’m definitely up for the challenge.”"

So far, his leadership has yet to be present and the Lions now have to brace for a fine or a possible suspension from the NFL. On top of that, Detroit blew a 23-6 lead in the fouth quarter and now are 0-1 heading into Green Bay in Week 2. Cue the sad blues.