Shawn Williams Ejected for Ugly Helmet-to-Helmet Hit on Andrew Luck

Shawn Williams hit the locker room early on Sunday after the Cincinnati Bengals safety was ejected for a helmet-to-helmet hit on Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, per Marisa Contipelli of the Bengals' official site.

Luck was being tackled by Bengals defensive end Michael Johnson when Williams led with his helmet to hit Luck high. Al Riveron, the NFL's senior vice president of officiating, shared a replay of the hit:

While some assumed Williams was being punished under the NFL's new use-of-helmet rules, the Washington Post's Mark Maske clarified that wasn't the case:

In the offseason, the NFL announced players would receive a 15-yard penalty and potentially be ejected for an infraction, outlining the three situations that would bring the helmet rule into effect: "[lowering] his helmet to establish a linear body posture prior to initiating and making contact with the helmet; unobstructed path to his opponent; contact clearly avoidable and player delivering the blow had other options."

Regardless of the specifics behind Williams' ejection, a helmet-to-helmet hit on Luck was one of the last things the Colts wanted to see.

Luck missed all of 2017 while recovering from shoulder surgery, and he's basically back to 100 percent for the first time since 2015, when he suffered the shoulder injury that eventually warranted surgery.

Not only did Luck remain in the game after Williams' hit, but he also threw his first touchdown pass of the season to Eric Ebron at the 12:02 mark of the second quarter to help give Indianapolis a 10-3 lead.