If you ever see Mike Vanderjagt in the street, don't even mention the phrase "Wide left, wide left!" Apparently, the infamous missed field attempt against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2005 playoffs is still a sore subject for him. On March 12th, a student at the Marco charter school in Florida, where Vanderjagt works these days, brought up the notorious moment and started yelling "Wide left, wide left" in the former NFL kicker's direction. Vanderjagt didn't take too kindly to the taunt, so he went over to the kid and according to a police report, grabbed the child by the throat.
Even though a fellow classmate backed up the kid's story, Vanderjagt is claiming that when the child taunted him–an occurrence among the student body that, according to the kicker, has been happening for months now–he "approached the student and placed his hand on the child’s shoulder at the base of his neck. He said he touched the child to hold him in place while he talked." The middle school has decided to suspend Vanderjagt as their part-time coach and will ultimately let the principal decide his future.
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[via Sporting News]
