Ray Lewis says Vontaze Burfict could get booted from NFL if he can't change
Vontaze Burfict is a tough, physical linebacker who's been voted to the Pro Bowl. But at times his play has crossed the line and been called dirty.
He had a big blowup in the Bengals' playoff loss to the Steelers last season, which got him suspended for the first three games this year, and now he's back in the spotlight after making a couple of questionable plays last week against the Patriots — one of which earned him a $75,000 fine.
Ray Lewis, an all-time great at the linebacker position, thinks if Burfict can't clean up his act, he's on his way out of the NFL.
"I don't know what Burfict thinks the next move for him is," Lewis said on "Undisputed" on Thursday. "Because the next move is probably out of this league, and he'll probably never be mentioned again."
Lewis said if he were Burfict's teammate, he would've warned him after his playoff meltdown, and if he'd been hit in the knees the way Burfict did to New England's Martellus Bennett, "I'm meeting him in the parking lot after that."
"This guy is only known for his antics. As talented as he may be," Lewis said.
Burfict is trying to get attention with his tough-guy tactics, Lewis said, and hurting himself by trying to be something he's not.
Shannon Sharpe took it a step further. "If you have to resort to that, I'm questioning your ability," he said.
"At what point in time does the NFL say 'You know what, Vontaze? We've fined you $50,000, $35 (thousand), $75,000 for this offense, we've suspended you for three games, and nothing seems to be getting your attention," Sharpe said. "So what we're gonna do now, the next incident you have, I don't care what it is, if we deem it out of the scope of a football play, you're gone for one year."
"Which is next anyway," Lewis replied.
