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Nick Wagoner, ESPN Staff Writer
PHILADELPHIA — For the second time in as many meetings with the Philadelphia Eagles, the San Francisco 49ers lost a key player to an ejection.
In the NFC Championship Game, it was left tackle Trent Williams. On Sunday, it was linebacker Dre Greenlaw.
With 9:27 left in the third quarter of San Francisco’s 42-19 win, Greenlaw tackled Eagles receiver DeVonta Smith near the Philadelphia sideline after a 13-yard completion. Greenlaw lifted Smith off his feet and slammed him to the ground, which drew a penalty flag.
As Greenlaw and Smith stood up, Eagles staffers and players rushed over and began yelling back and forth with Greenlaw and some of his teammates.
Dom DiSandro, the Eagles head of security, stepped toward Greenlaw, who extended his arm as he yelled at DiSandro. Greenlaw’s hand appeared to come in contact with DiSandro’s face as he pointed at him, which drew the disqualification.
Before Greenlaw was ejected, the officials had a lengthy discussion with Eagles coach Nick Sirianni, who pleaded his case for an ejection. Once the decision was made, Niners coach Kyle Shanahan was visibly angry with the decision, coming out on the field and screaming at the officials.
Soon after, Greenlaw sprinted to the locker room to a chorus of boos from Eagles fans. DiSandro was also removed from the game but received a hearty ovation from Philadelphia fans on his way out.
Greenlaw was leading San Francisco with seven tackles at the time of his ejection. He has a history of drawing unnecessary roughness penalties, as he has had two others this season and five in his career.