AP

Maybe Titans rookie quarterback Zach Mettenberger should wear a red no-contact jersey when he goes out in Nashville.

Or at least put on some cologne to cover up the smell of corn dogs.

According to Jim Wyatt of the Tennesseean, Mettenberger was sucker-punched at a bar over the weekend, after a fellow patron taunted the former LSU quarterback with a yell of “Roll Tide.”

Steve Ford, the owner of Loser’s Most Wanted Bar & Grill, said Mettenberger did nothing wrong before the Alabama fan took a shot.

“Here’s the truth: The guy said something about ‘Roll Tide!’ to Zach, and Zach turned around and said ‘Good luck with that,’ ” Ford said. “And the guy’s buddy then sucker-punched Zach.

“I promise you that Mettenberger did not throw a punch. He didn’t do anything. The guy sucker-punched him in the eye, that’s the bottom line, and the guy that punched him started running out the door. My door guys had to chase him down.”

Neither Mettenberger nor the bar owner will press charges.

“I know in 15 years being in the bar business, I know that everyone is trying to provoke someone who is a moving billboard,” Ford said. “I don’t care if they are country music, a rapper, football players or whatever. Everybody is trying to push somebody’s buttons. It is a lawsuit jungle out there.”

To his credit, Mettenberger apparently handled the incident appropriately, saving the Titans a preseason headache.