RENTON -- Seahawks defensive end Frank Clark was ejected for the final half hour of practice on Thursday after punching tackle Germain Ifedi.
Ifedi dropped instantly to the turf and left the field while being attended to by trainers.
"Disappointed we had a couple guys get after it today," head coach Pete Carroll said. "There’s no room for fighting in football. It is not part of this game. It’s not supposed to be part of this game, and we frown upon that very heavily. Real disappointed that that happened today. We have to learn and get better and be right."
The punch of Ifedi by Clark was secondary to an initial melee involving defensive tackle Rodney Coe and center Will Pericak.
During one-on-one pass rushing drills, Coe and Pericak matched up against each other. Coe lost his balance and Pericak continued to block him through the group of offensive linemen watching from behind. Coe seemingly took offense and hip tossed Pericak into a water dispenser set up behind the drill.
That led to a bigger fracas with offensive and defensive players yelling and screaming at each other, players toppling to the ground and shoving all around.
After the initial wave subsided and it appeared the drill was getting close to being able to resume, Clark delivered a haymaker that caught Ifedi - who had removed his helmet - flush and dropped him to the turf. Another scrum ensued with Ifedi caught at the bottom of the pile as trainers were signaled to come attend to the downed lineman.
"I know it’s happened all around the league, it happens everywhere, but it’s not OK and it shouldn’t be part of it," Carroll said. "You can’t do it in the game; you get ejected, which is just what you saw happen. Somebody can get hurt, which you saw happen. We’ve taken a big stance against it and really disappointed it happened on day four (of camp)."
Carroll didn't have much of an update on Ifedi after practice, initially saying he didn't know before saying "he's alright."
"Scuffles happen in camp," said defensive end Michael Bennett, who has been in his fair share of scuffles through the years. "We've built up so much testosterone all camp and we want to go out here and battle every single time and there's time you go a little overboard. I think you have to find that line. I think we may have crossed that line today but we can talk about it and figure out where we stand upon that line again.
"It's about apologizing and being vulnerable. Sometimes in life you don't want to be vulnerable because it doesn't show that you're a man, but in this case it's important to be vulnerable and let him know that you made a mistake and you'll never cross that line again."
Photo Credit: SEATTLE, WA - AUGUST 18: Defensive end Frank Clark #55 of the Seattle Seahawks reacts after making a stop against the Minnesota Vikings at CenturyLink Field on August 18, 2016 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)