Saints HC: ‘Nothing malicious’ regarding Nathan Shepherd attacker of Chargers’ Justin Herbert | News, results, highlights, statistics and rumors

Following the New Orleans Saints’ 26-8 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, Saints head coach Dennis Allen said Monday that defensive tackle Nathan Shepard did not intentionally try to injure Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.

“I think that’s inaccurate. Here’s a guy trying to tackle the quarterback. He’s on the ground and has no idea whether the quarterback has the ball or not. He’s just trying to take the quarterback to the ground,” Allen. ESPN’s Katherine Terrell reports. “There was nothing malicious about this play. This is a guy trying to put on a play. I went back and watched the play again after seeing the comments and I don’t agree with it.”

Herbert threw a pass to Chargers running back J.C. Dobbins while still on his feet, but as he was taken to the ground, Shepherd, who was lying on the field, pulled his ankle.

Chargers center Bradley Bozeman quickly pushed Shepard away from Herbert, making it a priority to protect his quarterback, who has been dealing with a lingering right ankle sprain since Week 2.

After the game, both Shepard and Bozeman received unnecessary roughing penalties.

“It was probably one of the dirtiest plays I’ve ever seen,” Bozeman said Sunday, according to Terrell. “You protect your quarterback no matter what. And I think any of our offensive linemen would have done the same thing in my position.”