Eagles security chief ‘Big Dom’ ejected after sideline scuffle
December 5, 2023
Philadelphia Eagles chief security officer Dom DiSandro after the NFL game on Sunday Dec. 3, 2023 in Philadelphia. (Matt Slocum/AP)
The Eagles got attention for a different kind of brotherly shove during their home field loss to the 49ers on Sunday.
Dom DiSandro, the team’s chief security officer, was ejected from the field after he got involved in a sideline scuffle between wide receiver DeVonta Smith and Niners linebacker Dre Greenlaw.
More repercussions could be on the way, according to NBC’s Pro Football Talk.
“There will be a significant punishment imposed both on DiSandro and the Eagles by the league,” wrote NBC’s Mike Florio, citing a conversation with an unnamed high-level executive with another team.
The fracas provoked a heated and divided reaction among football fans. Some criticized DiSandro for stepping into an altercation that refs and league officials were responsible for handling. Eagles diehards defended the security chief, who’s in his 25th season with the team and is beloved by players.
“Dom DiSandro a Philadelphia legend 😭,” Instagram user overtimeszn wrote after DiSandro was ejected.
Some 49ers fans were outraged, although many focused more on crowing about their team’s 42-19 blowout over the Birds. Others who watched the game expressed bewilderment over the attention given to the actions of a non-player support staff employee.
A light punch and a roaring ovation
It’s unclear what precipitated the third-quarter brawl.
Greenlaw reportedly tackled Smith with a “body slam” at the sideline. Elsewhere it’s been described as a “suplex,” a wrestling move where one wrestler picks up another and throws him to the ground. Greenlaw has used the move during games in the past.
DiSandro was standing nearby. When the two players stood up he tried to separate them and in the process shoved Greenlaw. The linebacker responded by throwing a punch that grazed DiSandro’s face, video of the encounter shows.
Greenlaw was ejected, flagged 15 yards for unnecessary roughness, and may face a financial penalty. The NFL recently threated to crack down on fighting, following pre-game tussles at some games.
DiSandro was also ejected and received a roaring ovation from the crowd as he walked to the locker room.
Because NFL rules don’t allow the league to tell on-field officials to flag a non-player, DiSandro wasn’t flagged and the Eagles weren’t immediately penalized, a league official later explained.
But more sanctions may still be coming for all the parties involved.
“Team security officials are not in-game bouncers. Keeping the peace is the job of the officials,” NBC’s Florio wrote. “Non-players who insinuate themselves into the game action risk losing access to the game area.”
“No one touches Dom!!!!”
Along with the home field crowd, some Eagles and their fans reacted with something like joy to DiSandro’s ejection and his triumphant, back-slapping walk to the lockers.
“DOM is a legend lol been there since Andy [Reid] took over the eagles …. DOM for mayor,” former running back LeSean McCoy wrote on X/Twitter.
“I trust Dom… If you know Dom, you know he ain’t putting hands on people. I know that he’s gonna learn from this too,” defensive end Brandon Graham said after the game.
“NO ONE TOUCHES DOM!!!!” cheered Reddit user u/Somnuzzzz, over a looping GIF of the security officer taking the punch.
Meanwhile, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan expressed dismay. “I just can’t believe someone uninvolved in a football game can taunt our players like that and put their hands in our guy’s face,” he said.
San Francisco fans and others piled on on social media, trash-talking the Eagles, criticizing their performance during the game, and demanding DiSandro’s firing.
That drew eye-rolls from the Philly crowd. They pointed out other sideline interference by coaches and staff that never drew penalties and defended DiSandro for protecting his players, as his job requires.
“I hope he gets nothing more than a fine, really nothing wrong with what he did,” opined Reddit user u/Churrasco_fan.
“It looked to me like he tried to separate 2 players to prevent them from fighting… The hate directed at the Eagles head of security for trying to prevent a fight felt completely unhinged to me,” u/InvectiveOfASkeptic wrote.
A Papa Bear and a fixer
DiSandro has long held a special place in players’ hearts.
A big man who’s always seen in an Eagles cap and never speaks to the press, he’s not only the team’s security chief, reporting directly to owner Jeffrey Lurie, but also a senior adviser to general manager Howie Roseman and a sort of informal chief psychologist, according to an Inquirer profile.
Some players reportedly describe him as a close confidante, or a big brother or father figure, while Jason Kelce called him the team’s “Papa Bear.”
Born in South Philly, he grew up in the Northeast, was briefly an offensive lineman at Penn State, and earned a sports management degree, per the Inquirer. After doing some work as a players’ liaison for Eagles security, he was hired in 1999 and got the top security job around 2012.
In addition to handling security issues, he assists players who are arrested, get parking tickets, or are having personal problems, according to the profile. He helped one plan his wedding, and made sure a plane delayed its departure for a game so another could see his wife give birth to their child.
He may be the only NFL executive with a clothing line — the “Big Dom Collection” — with proceeds going to the Eagle Autism Foundation. As of this week he’s also likely the league’s only security chief with his own Wikipedia page.
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