Even before the dust had totally settled following the Seattle Sounders 2-2 tie with the Philadelphia Union on Saturday, there was a lot of hand-wringing over the possibility that Eddie Johnson would be suspended for kneeing Antoine Hoppenot during the dying minutes. Turns out, people had reason to worry.
Although Johnson was not suspended, the MLS Disciplinary Committee definitely looked at the incident. Luckily for the Sounders, they decided that his actions weren't enough to warrant suspension.
"Though Johnson's actions could be seen as some as being in a threatening manner, they lack excessive force, brutality and did not credibly endanger the safety of Hoppenot," Disciplinary Committee Chairman Nelson Rodriguez explained in the video.
The video also explains how the punishments of Steven Lenhart and Paulo Nagamura were consistent with their thinking, but also showed how the committee has an ability to view similar incidents in their different contexts.
This was the first time I've seen Rodriguez give such a detailed explanation of their thinking. Hopefully this is the start of a trend.