Did Ray Rice Spit At Phil Taylor?

After the second play of the Browns-Ravens game, Cleveland tackle Phil Taylor earned a flag for slapping Ray Rice's helmet. Taylor insinuated that he was retaliating for something Rice had done.

Taylor's teammate provided a clue:

“I heard a guy scream he got spit on,” Browns linebacker D’Qwell Jackson said. “If guys are spitting, that’s immature. That’s elementary. We’re all grown men. There’s no need to spit on a guy. I don’t know if it was Ray, but apparently someone got spit on.”

Reporters then asked Taylor if Rice had spit on him. Taylor was coy.

“Look at the film, you will see . . . I’m not going to say. It is what it is. I need to keep my composure.”

The video is inconclusive, but at the 11-second mark Rice either says or does something (his mouthguard jumps), and Taylor immediately hits him.

[ Cleveland Plain Dealer]