What we know about the confrontation between Eric Reid and Malcolm Jenkins

History between the two is boiling over on Sunday.

Panthers safety Eric Reid is having multiple run-ins with Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins during the game on Sunday between the two teams.

Reid was standing on his own while the teams met at midfield prior to the game when the pair approached each other. The two exchanged words, before things began getting heated. Torrey Smith, Reid’s teammate, pulled him away from the situation and walked with him to the sideline.

Since that time, things haven’t calmed down. Reid has been gesturing toward the Eagles’ sideline following plays, and was penalized for a late hit on Carson Wentz, before slamming Zach Ertz who ran over to retaliate for the hit on the quarterback.

We don’t know exactly what happened, but there is clear friction between Reid and Jenkins.

Reid has made several comments about Jenkins’ involvement in protests by NFL players during the anthem. During his introductory press conference with the Panthers, Reid called the NFL Players Coalition (of which Jenkins is a founding member) “an NFL-created subversion group,” and was critical of the Eagles’ safety last year for his involvement in discussions with the NFL.

In late 2017 Reid said that Jenkins was working directly with the NFL without the knowledge of players, and speaking for protesting players without talking to them directly. This led to Reid leaving the NFL Players Coalition as a result.

“(We’re not) satisfied with the structure of the Coalition or the communication that Malcolm has been having with the NFL on his own, speaking on behalf of protesting players,” Reid said.

Jenkins took exception for Reid’s comments at the time responding by saying:

“They understood the entire scope of the plan. The last time we had conversations with (Roger) Goodell and Troy Vincent, Michael Thomas and Eric Reid were on that call. They understood the proposal. What we didn’t have was a conversation with players in the coalition based on some of the responses that we got from the league. We then talked about myself contracting Troy Vincent just to give them some updates on some of our feedback, which I did. That call did not have Mike or Eric on it. Everybody kind of agreed to that.”

Reid was not signed by an NFL team for several months and is currently involved in a lawsuit against the league for colluding against him during this time. Upon his return Reid has continued to protest, kneeling during the national anthem. Meanwhile Jenkins has chosen not to protest during the anthem this season, but remains active in the community and continues to work with the NFL Players Coalition.

We will likely hear more about precisely what happened between the two after the game, but for now emotions are high in Philadelphia and it’s unclear whether this powderkeg will explode further.