One costly penalty and a sideline shouting match nearly derailed the Seattle Seahawks‘ trip to the Super Bowl, putting cornerback Tariq Woolen in the NFL’s sights. The Seahawks secured a 31-27 win over the Los Angeles Rams, but the taunting penalty and the consequent touchdown made the game much closer than it should’ve been.

The incident occurred with 2:13 left in the third quarter with Seattle leading 31–20. The Rams were facing third-and-12 at their opponent’s 49-yard line, with cornerback Tariq Woolen helping force a fourth down by breaking up a pass intended for Puca Nacua. Everything pointed toward a punt and another chance for the Seahawks to bleed the clock. Instead, Woolen turned toward the Rams’ sideline and decided to trash-talk, immediately earning an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty (a 15-yard flag) and gifting Los Angeles a fresh set of downs.

However, what followed made it worse.

The Rams immediately capitalized with Matthew Stafford targeting Woolen on a 34-yard touchdown strike to Puka Nacua, pushing his team to 27-31. To Woolen’s relief, the Rams never found the end zone again, even with a full quarter left to play. Yet, the damage from that sequence lingered. On the broadcast, Woolen and rookie safety Nick Emmanwori were later shown being separated on the sideline, clearly still jawing at each other.

And the consequences might not stop there. Every Saturday, the NFL releases its accountability report, detailing fines for on-field conduct. Taunting falls under unsportsmanlike conduct, which typically carries a fine of $11,593 and can climb as high as $17,389 for repeat offenses. That matters because Woolen has been here before.

Earlier this season, he was fined $11,593 for standing over Washington’s Jacory Croskey-Merritt after a tackle in Week 9. Given that history, it wouldn’t be surprising if the number is higher this time around, especially because it wasn’t an unintentional outburst.

As per referee Clay Martin in the game’s pool report, Woolen wasn’t penalized because of a single instance but because he continued to “jaw after repeated efforts by the official to have him turn away and go to his own bench”. Clearly, Woolen’s emotions got the best out of him. But at least he was deeply apologetic about it later.

“I made a great play,” he said before talking about his past penalty. “I gotta be better than that, celebrate with my team and the next play, they scored a touchdown. That wouldn’t have happened if I just celebrate with the team, so I gotta be smarter. I got a taunting penalty earlier in the season, so I’ve gotta be more aware of that. They’re gonna call the taunt. I gotta celebrate with the team and shoot, onto the next play.”

But Woolen was far from done turning heads. In a social media update, he made sure he got his point across, albeit in a hilarious way.

Tagging the league and his team on X, the 26-year-old tweeted “no more taunting penalties” accompanied by a GIF that read “I’m sorry, Do you still love me?”

“No cap high intense game and when you in the zone and ballin with your bros sometimes you black out,” Woolen further wrote, responding to his original tweet.

What’s more, he also dismissed any lingering issues with Emmanwori or anyone else.

“Wasn’t getting pressed,” he wrote, sharing a clip of the sideline argument. “We brothers and we all chasing greatness we on the same mission.”

Emmanwori, meanwhile, also shared a similar stance after the incident.

“It’s just a competitive game,” he said. “We’re one game away from the Bowl. Told him to stay in the game, we’re gonna need you later on in the game. Guys are going at each other. It’s competitive guys, two competitive teams, a lot of alpha males. “That’s my brother though. We’ve got a bond like that. Teams that have great bonds can do stuff like that. Next play, next series, next job, that was the message.”

Macdonald sends authoritative but supportive message

Despite the costly mistake, head coach Mike Macdonald was quick to support his player rather than throw him under the bus. He understands exactly how quickly the game could have flipped after the 15-yard taunting penalty and the coverage bust that followed. Still, when given the chance, he didn’t single anyone out.

“He made an emotional decision,” the head coach said. “But we have to pick him up. There is no point in getting upset. You’ve got to go rebound and come back, and he played well for the rest of the game. 12 as one. Keep picking everyone up.”

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That’s what leadership looks like in moments like that. Outside of that brief stretch, Woolen actually put together a solid game. He finished with two solo tackles and didn’t allow much of anything in the fourth quarter as the Los Angeles Rams tried to rally. Seattle locked things down late, and Woolen was part of that.

While his overall performance this season has been solid with 33 solo tackles, eight assisted tackles, and one interception, these numbers don’t tell the whole story, especially when it comes to his discipline and consistency.

Where the concern creeps in is coverage. Woolen’s 61.7 coverage grade ranks 61st among 114 cornerbacks, and that vulnerability showed up again Sunday when he couldn’t stay with Puka Nacua on the touchdown that tightened the game. It wasn’t a one-off moment so much as a reminder of an area that still needs tightening.

But even that isn’t the biggest issue. The larger concern is decision-making. The taunting penalty was unnecessary. It changed the field position. It gave the Rams life. And it wasn’t the first time. Tariq Woolen drew a similar unsportsmanlike flag back in Week 9. Whether he was provoked or not, that’s something he has to clean up.

Woolen is a key piece of the best defense in football this season. The Seahawks need him locked in.