Seattle Seahawks defensive end Frank Clark apologized Wednesday for punching guard Germain Ifedi in practice on Aug. 3.
Clark and Ifedi engaged in a verbal dispute which quickly turned physical. Ifedi was reportedly without a helmet and Clark punched him in the face, leading to a brawl between the Seahawks' offensive and defensive players.
The 24-year-old was contrite Wednesday.
"It was a heat of the moment thing," Clark said via ESPN's Sheil Kapadia. "I let my emotions overcome the situation. For a brief moment, I thought that myself, that I was bigger than the team in all regards. I thought about myself first before I thought about my defense as a whole and my defensive line, to be more specific. Because it was a 1-on-1 drill. And that was basically it. It was an overheated thing. We always get heated up. It's O-Line, D-Line. It's supposed to happen. But it just got taken too far."
Clark said it's likely his temper will flare up again but he'll try to be more conscientious going forward.
"The biggest message was just letting them know how remorseful I was," Clark said. "I just wanted to let them know that I was actually sorry. And I wanted to let Germain know that I was sorry, besides the team. That was my biggest thing. I just wanted to let him know that it was my fault and that it would never get to that point again. I'm sure things are going to get heated again. It's football. It's the offensive line and defensive line. But you've got to be aware of those situations and know how to take the actions out another kind of way."
