LA Rams star linebacker and tackling machine Bobby Wagner took it upon himself to stop a protestor who interrupted Monday night's game against the San Francisco 49ers as he flattened him with a big hit before security finally got a hold of him.
The man had ran onto the field with a purple flare in hand in the second quarter of the the game with a t-shirt to protest for animal rights after an incident in Utah. The invader has been identified as Alex Taylor, an activist of the group Direct Action Everywhere.
The game had to be stopped with the man evading security, whilst one of his friends and fellow group members failed to enter the pitch. However, star linebacker Wagner took it upon himself to tackle Taylor when he decided to turn back towards the Rams sideline.
Wagner didn't take long to catch up with the protestor and immediately side-checked him, knocking the pitch invader down to the turf in dramatic fashion. Security were then able to swarm him and remove him from the field, allowing the game to continue.
Speaking afterwards, Wagner insisted he was simply trying to help security out, and called out the eco rebels. He said: “I just saw somebody running on the field and he looked like he wasn’t supposed to be on the field - I saw security was having a bit of a problem so I helped them out.
“That’s just keeping it safe. We don’t know what that fan’s got or what they’re doing. We all know what they’re carrying in their pockets, and whatever that little smoke stuff is, that s**t can be dangerous.
“One of the guys on the other side looked like he got hurt and security looked like they were struggling - so I was frustrated and I took it out on the fan.
"I think security is doing the best they can and I just saw and opportunity to help them.”
In a tweet from their official account, the pair are 'a bit beaten up but in good spirits.' On Instagram, the group posted a photo of Fluty and Taylor showing their citations for entering the field of play.
