Bills safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson ejected for spitting at Raiders' Brock Bowers

Buffalo Bills safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson was ejected late in the second quarter of Sunday’s Week 6 game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium after appearing to spit in the direction of tight end Brock Bowers, NBC Sports reported.

Gardner-Johnson had been jawing with Raiders center Tyler Linderbaum and Bowers before spitting in their direction, and officials disqualified him with 14 seconds left in the half. The unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty was enforced as half the distance — 14 yards — and Matt Gay drilled a 27-yard field goal on the final play of the half to tie the game 13-13. Buffalo had led 13-10 at the time of the ejection, per Florida Today.

CBS cameras caught the incident, which play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz called “about as disrespectful as it gets.” It was the first ejection for spitting in the NFL since Philadelphia’s Jalen Carter was tossed in the 2025 season opener against Dallas, and the first ejection of Gardner-Johnson’s career, per the Quirky Research ejection database cited by Florida Today. NBC Sports reported the league could also suspend Gardner-Johnson for next week’s game.

The Bills played the second half without their starting safety. Buffalo had scored on its first three possessions — Tyler Bass field goals of 44 and 28 yards and a 9-yard Josh Allen touchdown pass to Khalil Shakir — but the ejection swung momentum and the teams went to the locker room level at 13-13.