49ers offensive tackle Trent Williams appeared to take a swing at the head of Giants defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson, striking him in the face, leaving fans confused that he was not ejected.
The play happened while the 49ers kneeled with the ball while attempting to run the clock out at the end of the first half with 13 seconds remaining.
San Francisco was leading 17-6 going into the intermission when Williams and Robinson got into an altercation.
Both players were given unnecessary roughness penalties on the play.
But no ejections were handed out.
However, the replay showed Williams appearing to throw a punch and striking Robinson in the helmet — which is usually a guaranteed ejection from an NFL game.
Any player that throws a punch or a forearm will receive an “unsportsmanlike conduct foul” and an automatic disqualification if committed twice in the same game or if the referees deem the action worthy, according to the 2023 NFL rulebook.
But the officials elected not to toss Williams, and fans flooded social media with reactions, with many perplexed by the call.
One person on Twitter, formerly known as X, asked: “How was he not tossed?”
Another said: “Williams punched Robinson, and he didn’t get thrown out of the game? Why?”
A third wrote: “Bad actions in sports need to be condemned. Should have been tossed.”
Someone else added: “Trent Williams should’ve been ejected.”
And A fifth declared: “Thought thrown punches were auto ejection???? Clearly not with the NFL’s darlings.”
The 49ers cruised to a 30-12 win over the Giants to move to 3-0, while New York dropped to 1-2 on the season.