NFL Player Ejection Database, and a few facts
Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2025 3:10 am
I found a webpage that purports to list every NFL player ejection since the 1978 season: https://www.quirkyresearch.com/football ... ejections/
A few facts for you about ejections according to the listings in the database:
1.Of the 604 player ejections in the NFL since 1978, by my count here is the composition of the positional breakdown in order of frequency:
145 Secondary Players (most commonly cornerbacks with 71)
139 Defensive Linemen
103 Offensive Linemen (not counting tight ends or fullbacks)
92 Linebackers (no distinctions between middle side or outside)
59 Wide Receivers
36 Running Backs
24 Tight Ends
2 Quarterbacks
2 Return Men (1 kick, 1 punt)
1 Long Snapper
1 Punter
2. Those two quarterbacks interestingly enough were teammates at one point: Trent Dilfer and Tony Banks. Dilfer's in 1996 was for a blow to the head against John Randle, and Tony Banks was in a 1996 game against Chicago for fighting.
3. The teams whose players have been ejected the most since 1978 by a considerable amount is the Raiders with 41 ejections. The only other three teams with 25 player ejections since 1978 are the Lions with 27, 49ers with 27, and Bills with 25 player ejections.
4. The franchise with the fewest ejections who has been around since before 1978 is the Patriots with 13 ejections. The Ravens have nine ejections and Texans have three, but they of course didn't exist for the entire span of the database.
5. There are four players who were ejected three times in their career: defensive end Alonzo Spellman, cornerbacks Derrick Burroughs, and Mark Lee, and linebacker Vincent Smith. If you are familiar with those guys, were they hard hitters?
And 6. When I filtered my PivotTable by referee last name, the most common one was named White? But that could be multiple officials who happened to have the same last name with 27 ejections given out. If that last name refers to multiple people, then someone with the last name McElwee gave out 26 ejections.
At the very least I hope you find these factoids interesting.
A few facts for you about ejections according to the listings in the database:
1.Of the 604 player ejections in the NFL since 1978, by my count here is the composition of the positional breakdown in order of frequency:
145 Secondary Players (most commonly cornerbacks with 71)
139 Defensive Linemen
103 Offensive Linemen (not counting tight ends or fullbacks)
92 Linebackers (no distinctions between middle side or outside)
59 Wide Receivers
36 Running Backs
24 Tight Ends
2 Quarterbacks
2 Return Men (1 kick, 1 punt)
1 Long Snapper
1 Punter
2. Those two quarterbacks interestingly enough were teammates at one point: Trent Dilfer and Tony Banks. Dilfer's in 1996 was for a blow to the head against John Randle, and Tony Banks was in a 1996 game against Chicago for fighting.
3. The teams whose players have been ejected the most since 1978 by a considerable amount is the Raiders with 41 ejections. The only other three teams with 25 player ejections since 1978 are the Lions with 27, 49ers with 27, and Bills with 25 player ejections.
4. The franchise with the fewest ejections who has been around since before 1978 is the Patriots with 13 ejections. The Ravens have nine ejections and Texans have three, but they of course didn't exist for the entire span of the database.
5. There are four players who were ejected three times in their career: defensive end Alonzo Spellman, cornerbacks Derrick Burroughs, and Mark Lee, and linebacker Vincent Smith. If you are familiar with those guys, were they hard hitters?
And 6. When I filtered my PivotTable by referee last name, the most common one was named White? But that could be multiple officials who happened to have the same last name with 27 ejections given out. If that last name refers to multiple people, then someone with the last name McElwee gave out 26 ejections.
At the very least I hope you find these factoids interesting.
