Gandy said he inadvertently shoved White away from him, thinking he was a teammate.

Gandy was quick to dismiss comparisons between his ejection and that of Cleveland Browns tackle Orlando Brown for shoving official Jeff Triplette two weeks before.

"I don't know what to expect from the NFL, but my case was totally different," Gandy said. "I wasn't facing the referee, he just accidentally ran into my arm and I pushed him away. At that point I thought he was one of my teammates and I just pushed and said, 'Get away from me.' Then I realized he was a referee."

Coach Bill Cowher called Gandy's actions "flat wrong."

"You can't do that," Cowher said. "Whatever they deem necessary to do, they should do it. There was some frustrations on our part, but what he did was totally uncalled for."

Brown was hit by a flag weighted with BBs -- thrown by Triplette -- during a Dec. 12 game with Jacksonville. Brown stormed back on the field and knocked down Triplette with a two-handed shove to the chest.

Brown was suspended for the rest of the season, and further disciplinary action is possible.