AP

That on-field incident between Cardinals defensive end Darnell Dockett and safety Kerry Rhodes was, in reality, an on-face incident. As in a spit-on-face incident.

Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Dockett spat in Rhodes face.

The incident occurred late in the fourth quarter, with the Cardinals trailing 7-6 and the Jets driving. The Cardinals’ defense planned to let the Jets score a touchdown, which would have stretched the lead (with the extra point) to 14-6, and which would have given the Cardinals the ball back with a chance to force overtime.

The only problem? Dockett didn’t want to let the Jets score. And so he resisted. And he resisted. And eventually, as Rhodes was trying to persuade Dockett to go along, Dockett let his saliva do the talking.

The source says that Dockett will indeed be disciplined by the team, and that the team has been hoping to keep the situation under wraps, given that the team currently is in a bit of a free fall, with eight straight losses after a 4-0 start.

It’s already bad for the Cardinals. Imagine how much worse it would be if the team were located in a major East Coast market.