"Green Bay Packers safety Nick Collins apparently had a reason to be angry Monday night, and it didn't have anything to do with the Packers' 20-17 loss to the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. The NFL is investigating a confrontation between Collins and a fan after the game, league spokesman Greg Aiello told The Associated Press on Tuesday. Collins reacted to a fan's racial epithet by throwing his mouth guard in the fan's direction as he entered the tunnel to the visiting team's locker room, WITI-TV (Channel 6) reported late Monday. According to a source familiar with the incident, the fan used a racial slur and spit at Collins, hitting him in the face as he stood in the tunnel. Collins had stopped to throw his gloves to a Packers fan in the stands. Collins walked away but then came out of the tunnel and threw his plastic mouthpiece at the fan before security led him away, the source said. The station had video of the incident but pulled it off its website because NFL rebroadcast rules prohibit it from being posted, it said. Collins apologized for throwing his mouthpiece in an interview in the locker room, the station said. "I was made aware of it by our security department," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said Tuesday. "I have not seen the video. I know the NFL is looking into the matter. I understand Nick's story as far as what happened and what our security people that were there, and I support Nick 100%." Asked about throwing his mouthpiece, McCarthy said it was best not to interact with an angry fan, but he did not criticize Collins for his actions." http://www.jsonline.com/sports/packers/103975324.html
