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USA Today

The NFL saw what happened in Miami and the league is reportedly planning to take action, but it'll likely stop short of dropping the entire hammer on either team. Brian Flores demands the Dolphins walk into each and every game with fight in their hearts and minds, but he doesn't ever want it to spill over into the literal realm. That's exactly what happened against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 13 though, when things got far more than chippy between the two teams. 

After jawing at each other all day, things escalated to a sideline fight that saw hands thrown, but it all went nuclear when Bengals wideout Mike Thomas speared Dolphins returner Jakeem Grant -- the second time he'd done so in the game -- forcing a muffed punt. Thomas was penalized for kick catch interference, but was not ejected from the game. There will likely be fines handed out but reportedly no suspension, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, and it'll be interesting to see the size of the dent the league puts into the pockets of each individual involved -- considering how ugly things got in South Florida.

Immediately following the second spear, Flores and the Dolphins erupted, leading to what was nearly an all-out brawl on the field that required coaches to physically restrain the Miami head coach as he looked to physically wage war against the Bengals -- benches from both teams having cleared at that point. All told, ejections included Bengals safety Shawn Williams and Dolphins wide receivers DeVante Parker and Mack Hollins, and Bengals cornerback William Jackson landed an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

Xavien Howard and Tyler Boyd, the Dolphins cornerback and Bengals wide receiver, respectively, were already ejected before the mushroom cloud exploded later in the game. For his part, although his temper flared in justifiable fashion when also considering Grant was hurt on the second dirty hit, a fiery Flores feels he needs to be more level-headed going forward. 

"We've got to do a better job of keeping our poise," he said following the game. 

But he's not apologizing for standing up for his guys. 

"That starts with me," Flores furthered. "I've got to do a better job of keeping my poise. But, look, I'm going to stick up for my players. They're going to stick up for each other without getting penalties, without hurting the team, but we've got to do a better job of keeping our poise as a team. 

"The people in this organization, they're very important to me. I'm going to try to protect everyone here," Flores explained.

Seeing Flores in the fray is going over very well in the Dolphins locker room, as noted by rookie sixth-overall pick Tua Tagovailoa.

"I think it speaks a lot to Flo's character -- how much it means to him that, you know, his player got hit, and it wasn't the first time," said Tagovailoa. "It was the second time. You got to see, not just him, but other guys going in there trying to defend Jakeem and whatnot. I think it's a testament to how close we are as a team."