Bears rookie wide receiver continued his impressive preseason with three receptions for 62 yards — including a 16-yard pass from Jay Cutler to the 1-yard line that set up the Bears’ first touchdown in Saturday night’s 33-31 victory over the Washington Redskins. But he also learned a lesson: The guy who retaliates always gets the penalty.
Jeffery was called for unnecessary roughness when he was caught retaliating in a scrap with Redskins cornerback DeAngelo Hall after an eight-yard run by Matt Forte in the first quarter. Hall aggressively fended off Jeffery’s block and Jeffery responded by swiping at Hall’s head, inadvertently pulling Hall’s helmet off.
”I’ll just walk away next time and go back to the huddle,” Jeffery said.
Jeffery said coaches told him to ”just play smarter.” But they had to like the aggressiveness the rookie showed in battling Hall.
”It was just part of the game. Just playing physical,” the 6-3, 217-pound Jeffery said. ”Everyone’s going to go at you and give you their best shot. We were both in the moment and going at each other. I knew it was going to be a penalty.”
