The Philadelphia Eagles’ head of security will not be on the sideline when the team meets the Dallas Cowboys in a key NFC East matchup on Sunday night.
Dom DiSandroo was banned from the bench after his role in a sideline scuffle on Dec. 3 with San Francisco 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw during a game in Philadelphia, ESPN reported. DiSandro has been with the Eagles for 25 years, according to WCAU-TV.
“This is an ongoing conversation with the NFL, and we are going to respect the restriction that is currently in place,” the Eagles said in a statement Saturday. “Although Dom will not be on the sideline this Sunday, he will continue to fulfill his role with the team in all other capacities.”
Sources: NFL bans Eagles security chief Dom DiSandro from the sideline on Sunday https://t.co/l0hZP5dbn1
— The Philadelphia Inquirer (@PhillyInquirer) December 9, 2023
DiSanto, whose duties include protecting Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni, will be able to travel to Dallas with the team but will not be allowed on the sideline during the game, according to the cable sports news outlet. Known as “Big Dom” by Philadelphia fans, DiSandro’s duties include pregame meetings with security people, medical staff and operational staff, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. And he will oversee Eagles’ security throughout the day.
DiSandro tangled with Greenlaw, 27, a fifth-year veteran with the 49ers, on the sidelines while San Francisco was holding a 21-6 lead with 9:19 left in the third quarter against the defending NFC champions. The San Francisco linebacker tackled DeVonta Smith hard near the Eagles sideline and was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
Smith jumped up and began arguing with Greenlaw but the two players were separated, according to the Delaware News Journal.
Tempers are flaring between the 49ers and Eagles in Philly. pic.twitter.com/rnylqh4pWY
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) December 3, 2023
DiSandro got between the two players and put his hand on Greenlaw’s left shoulder. Greenlaw responded by swiping his hand toward DiSandro and hitting his face, according to the newspaper.
The 49ers went on to win the game 42-19 in a rematch of last season’s NFC Championship Game.
DiSandro and other Eagles officials met Friday with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell at the league office in New York, ESPN reported, citing league sources. The NFL still is reviewing additional material to see if further discipline is warranted.
“Dom is as good as they get in this business,” Sirianni said the day after the game, according to the Inquirer. “I’m so thankful for him. His natural instinct, he’s always going to try to defuse situations. That’s what he does. That’s his job. So obviously it was unfortunate (on Dec. 3). I know in Dom’s heart, he was truly trying to defuse the situation there. I’m sad that it came to what it came to, that anybody got thrown out of the game. The play was what it was. There was a lot of emotion. I’ve seen Dom do that before where he’s had to defuse the situation, that’s what he does.
“I know where Dom’s heart is, and it is truly to defuse the situation and stop what was going on on the sideline.”
Greenlaw, who could also face disciplinary action, said Wednesday that he and DiSandro exchanged apologies through intermediaries, ESPN reported.
“We just exchanged a formal apology just between me and (49ers general manager John Lynch) and some of the same people that we do know in the building and stuff like that,” Greenlaw said. “(DiSandro) seemed like a genuine guy. Seemed like a guy that everybody loved in the building.
“So, I hate that, honestly. I really hate that it even escalated and went to that.”
The Eagles (10-2) will face the Cowboys (9-3) at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.