Roquan Smith wasn’t the only one who took umbrage with Chiefs backup TE

It was the usual close battle between two of the top franchises in the league. Back in January, the AFC’s top seed hosted the reigning Super Bowl champions in the conference championship game. A defensive struggle went the way of the Kansas City Chiefs, 17-10, sending the Baltimore Ravens home and denying them their first Super Bowl appearance since 2012.

Last Thursday night, the two clubs squared off again, and Andy Reid’s club came up with another seven-point victory. Both teams scored 10 more points than they did in the AFC title tilt. The Raven came up a little short of possibly sending the game into overtime, but Lamar Jackson’s TD pass to tight end Isaiah Likely was overturned when it was ruled that he didn’t have both feet totally in bounds.

NFL addressed Chiefs and tight end Peyton Hendershot with fine

Then there was this matter in the fourth quarter of the showdown between the teams. Ravens’ All-Pro linebacker Roquan Smith chased Chiefs’ quarterback Patrick Mahomes out of bound, and there was some extracurricular activity from an inactive Kansas City player.

Meanwhile, Smith would later comment on the shove from Chiefs’ reserve tight end Peyton Hendershot (via NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero). “Whoever 88 is, I don’t know who he is, but he better watch himself,” explained Smith. "He did a little slick push. I'll see him when I see him.”

It was quite the “debut” per se for Hendershot. The former undrafted free agent spent two years with the Dallas Cowboys. He played in a total of 25 regular-season games and two postseason contests for Mike McCarthy’s team. He totaled 15 receptions for 141 yards and two scores, but did not catch a pass in any of his two playoff contests. Hendershot did make some plays on special teams, blocking a punt in last year’s regular-season finale at Washington.

However, there was nothing special about what Hendershot did to Smith in that Thursday night opener. A possible rematch in the playoffs between these clubs just got a lot more interesting.