The Buccaneers’ second-half meltdown in Sunday’s loss to the Bengals began with a botched fake punt on which running back Giovani Bernard was supposed to get the snap and run for a first down, but instead didn’t seem to realize the snap was going to him until the ball hit him. After the game, Bernard had a testy exchange with reporters but admitted that he was to blame.
As reporters approached Bernard to ask him what happened after the game, Bernard complained that they only want to talk to him after something bad happens and haven’t talked to him all season. In a video of the exchange posted by Jenna Laine of ESPN, reporters took issue with that, saying that they haven’t talked to him because he’s been injured and has barely played this season. Bernard at first said he didn’t want to talk.
“Can I go to my family that I have outside?” Bernard asked reporters.
After a moment, however, Bernard did speak to take responsibility for the fake punt.
“Miscommunication, that’s all it was on my part,” Bernard said. “I take complete fault for that. It was complete fault -- my fault, that’s it. It’s on me, all me, something I did wrong. It was all on me. No. 25 out there, that’s me. I was the one who did it. It was just me. I messed up. I messed up. Thank you, guys.”
With that, Bernard was done.
