Hall of Fame wide receiver Terrell Owens punched a heckler outside a CVS in Los Angeles last Saturday, telling a news outlet Wednesday that it was done to protect himself and a fan who were being threatened.

TMZ posted a video of the altercation, showing Owens landing a punch that dropped the alleged aggressor to the ground.

Witnesses told TMZ the alleged aggressor threatened to beat up Owens and the other man, who was wearing a 49ers jersey, outside of the store.

Witnesses told TMZ that Owens was playing peacemaker between the two men until the alleged aggressor took a swing at Owens, who then landed a haymaker.

“I made verbal demands asking the aggressor to stop his threatening behavior,” Owens told the Associated Press. “… Unfortunately, I had to act using self-defense to end a threat towards myself and the fan.”

Owens subsequently got into his Tesla and drove off. It’s unclear if police were summoned.

Owens was inducted into the Pro Football HOF in 2018 after a career that included 15,934 yards receiving and 153 touchdowns.

–Field Level Media