Javon Wims put his future with the Chicago Bears in jeopardy late Sunday afternoon when he went off and clocked New Orleans Saints safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson twice in the helmet in the 3rd quarter. It seemed to come out of nowhere. So much so that head coach Matt Nagy didn’t even see it. He was only told about it shortly after.
Wims was unsurprisingly ejected from the game. Expectations are he’ll be fined and possibly suspended. Some are even speculating if the Bears might just cut him outright. Nagy didn’t seem happy at all about it after the game. It isn’t conducive with the culture this team has built. So that leaves the big question.
Why did he do it?
There are some theories. Gardner-Johnson started his shenanigans shortly before by poking his finger in the visor of Anthony Miller. Some thought Wims was defending him. Later it was revealed that Gardner-Johnson actually ripped the mouthpiece out of Wims’ mouth during a play. Instead of being able to fire back, the receiver was taken off the field and forced to stew for several minutes.
When he finally got back on, he tried to do the same to the safety. When that failed, he decided to throw punches instead. Apparently, that might not have been the entire truth. According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, Wims told the Bears that Gardner-Johnson spit on him and that was the reason he threw the punches.
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#Bears WR Javon Wims told team officials that #Saints CB C.J. Gardner-Johnson spit on him, in addition to ripping out Wims’ mouthpiece, during Sunday’s game before Wims sucker punched Gardner-Johnson, per sources.
Wims was ejected. The NFL is now considering a suspension, too.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) November 2, 2020
Is this true? Well, the video doesn’t seem to catch it at any point. It does catch Gardner-Johnson ripping off Wims’ mouthpiece but no spitting action. That doesn’t mean it didn’t happen but it’s all about evidence.
THREAD: My Zapruder breakdown of the Chauncey Gardner-Johnson/Javon Wims beef.
It begins on this play on the Bears’ first possession of the second half. After exchanging some words, CJGJ rips Wims’ mouthpiece off and it falls onto the ground. pic.twitter.com/wwQgcbKdJ5
— Evan Saacks (@evansaacks) November 2, 2020
After an entire Saints drive where Wims was stewing on the bench for 11 real life minutes, Wims retaliates on the first play of the next drive. He tries to rip CJGJ’s mouthpiece out, but he is unsuccessful. That’s when he decides to throw a punch which… is also unsuccessful. pic.twitter.com/OJN6Uwuaxo
— Evan Saacks (@evansaacks) November 2, 2020
Javon Wims got baited and bit into it hard
The burden of proof is always critical in these cases. So unless Wims can produce some, he’s in big trouble. The reality is it feels more like he fell into a trap. Gardner-Johnson has a reputation for being an instigator on the Saints defense. Don’t believe it? His own teammate Michael Thomas threw a punch at him bare over a week prior to this incident. Clearly the guy rubs people the wrong way.
Yet that doesn’t excuse Wims for what he did. Miller didn’t throw a punch when he had the chance. If anything, this reinforces that a growing reputation for Wims being too hotheaded for his own good. People forget he also had a similar incident last year when he threw a punch at Prince Amukamara in the middle of practice.
This incident did no favors for the Bears. All it did was put the offense in a bad spot and led to an interception on the very next play. Those are the kinds of childish mistakes this team can’t afford. Wims may regret his actions now but it’s too late. He is becoming more of a liability with each passing day. It wouldn’t be a shock if he’s looking for work on a different team in the near future. Every action has consequences.
