Two kids in play ground (hey it fits).
One kid1 cusses at kid2, and pushes him to the ground.
Kid2, gets off ground and pushes Kid1.
Kid1 and large Kid3 start attacking Kid2, and Kid2 throws a punch at Kid1.

While it is true that Kid2 was the only kid that threw a punch, would you only punish Kid2?
It's a matter of opinion, but I would punish both children.
Kid1, would be punished for pushing Kid2 and aggressively starting the fight.
Kid2, would receive the larger punishment, but, when punishing, would consider the fact that it was a provoked response from Kid1, and he was outnumbered at the point of throwing the punch. As for Kid3, it would depend on what his intentions were.

The Defender was trying to get up, and the QB was twisting his head, and trying to rip his helmet off, which he almost did. That is not acceptable behavior from that QB, and his actions caused the Defender to "lose it", and then grab and remove his helmet.

After removing the QB's helmet, he was under attack by the lineman and QB (outnumbered), was backing up, and then took a swing with the helmet.

While the most serious aspect of the confrontation was the swing of the helmet, which took it to another level, the QB created the situation by trying to take his helmet off first. He and the lineman were attacking the defender as well, as the defender was trying to back off after removing the helmet.

At the time of the helmet swing, he was being attacked by a large lineman and the quarterback.

So, who do you punish?

I would punish both the Quarterback, and the defender, and I would argue the lineman was just trying to separate the two, although his aggression could have been seen as a threat by the defender. I would also punish the player that tried to kick the defender in the head afterward.

The quarterback did not finally stand down, until he realized the guy hit him with the helmet, where he then realized the dude would be in trouble and threw his hands up.

The defender would have the most severe punishment, due to the usage of the helmet as a weapon, although I would consider that he was under attack at the time of the swing, which people do not always think clearly when under attack.

The quarterback would receive the next most severe punishment, followed by the guy the kicked the defender in the head.

Whew, that's my take.
Atleast kids watching got to see Good Sportsmanship in action.

[Post edited by jonnyhawk at 11/15/2019 10:11AM]