‘ProFootballTalk do better’: Argos QB McLeod Bethel-Thompson takes popular NFL site to task for mischaracterizing East Final ‘scuffle’ with cameraman

Photo courtesy: Scott Grant / CFLPhotoArchive.com

Toronto Argonauts starting quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson is at odds with a major American media outlet after he was accused of “scuffling with a cameraman” after last Sunday’s East Final.

ProFootballTalk.com, NBC Sports’ massively popular NFL blog headed by commenter Mike Florio, posted an article for its 1.6 million Twitter followers on Saturday, detailing the chaotic aftermath of the Argos’ playoff elimination.

Toronto players were caught on video climbing into the stages to combat belligerent fans of the victorious Hamilton Tiger-Cats and vice-president of player personnel John Murphy was indefinitely suspended and later reportedly fired for his own physical and verbal altercation with a fan, but PFT also highlighted another incident involving Bethel-Thompson and a cameraman.

The TV broadcast appeared to show the quarterback physically forcing a TSN camera towards the ground as he made his way onto the field for post-game handshakes, but Bethel-Thompson appeared to take issue with the outlet’s choice to characterize it as a “scuffle.”

“Please set the record straight. I never touched the cameraman. I should not have touched his camera and I apologized for that. I expect it from some but ProFootballTalk do better,” Bethel-Thompson said in a tweet, while sharing the story.

Earlier this week, the quarterback addressed the incident publicly and apologized to the camera operator.

“I think tempers were high on a lot of ends. I know, the cameraman was just trying to do his job. I felt like he was too close in a vindictive way, but there was zero excuse for me to touch the camera in any form or fashion,” Bethel-Thompson said.

“It’s unacceptable behaviour. And hopefully, this can reach that cameraman that I’m very sorry for interfering with his work. I was trying to get to the Hamilton team to congratulate them, which was a hard enough endeavour.”

As of the posting of this story, ProFootballTalk has not issued a response.