Philadelphia Eagles running back Kenneth Gainwell went viral in Week 8’s win over the Washington Commanders after a halftime exchange between him and a fan on Instagram blew up.
The move also blew up in the face of Gainwell, who was criticized for responding during the game. He opened up about the incident at his locker on Friday.
“Just a wrong click and I just got mad because I was already upset with myself fumbling right before halftime,” the 24-year-old explained, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Reuben Frank. “So it was just the heat of the moment. I always look at my phone at halftime. I either text my parents or text my girlfriend. It’s just a thing I do.”
Heading into the locker room at halftime, Gainwell had fumbled the ball inside the Commanders 5-yard-line, on a drive that should have resulted in a Philadelphia touchdown earlier in the quarter.
The Mississippi native was upset about the play, leading to him responding to an Instagram post from an Eagles fan with the caption, “Hold on to the football you f**king bum.”
Gainwell’s response: “Lil boy don’t text me.”
Gainwell, Sirianni reflected on incident
Gainwell confirmed that he and Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni discussed how to properly respond to angry fans online, and he admitted he had learned from the situation.
“Basically just understanding that it was something that I shouldn’t have done because I’m a public figure and I take that responsibility,” he explained.
