Chargers' Bennett, former teammate sued in Fla.

A Florida man is suing San Diego Chargers running back Michael Bennett and a former Tampa Bay teammate, saying they attacked him at an International House of Pancakes.

Brian Gordon said in a lawsuit that Bennett, offensive lineman Anthony Davis and another man assaulted him in the restaurant parking lot in Tampa on Oct. 13. Gordon also alleges that Bennett had a gun.

However, Bennett on Monday denied having a weapon and said he was trying to be a peacemaker. No criminal charges have been filed.

Gordon, who is a personal trainer, told the Tampa Police Department he was eating breakfast around 3:45 a.m. when Davis began yelling profanities at a cook and waitress and demanding his food.

A patron asked him to stop using foul language, which Gordon said aggravated the situation, and that Davis threw a wooden high chair at his chest. He thrust it back at him.

Gordon told investigators Davis then charged at him, punched him once in the mouth and knocked him to his table.

"He said the suspect's teammates and friends then jumped in and started attacking him," the police report states.

Davis' attorney, Betsy Singer, declined to comment. Davis told detectives he was walking out the front door when he was hit by something and was knocked out. He also told police he didn't hit a man in the restaurant.

Gordon told police that a friend took him outside but he realized he didn't have his keys. While someone else went back in to look for them, Gordon said he was hit in the face again, but could not identify the assailant.

While outside, Gordon said a man he later identified as Bennett showed him a black handgun in a holster and asked if there was a problem. Gordon and his friend walked away and around the same time, police arrived.

Gordon told investigators he had loose teeth and that his jaw was swollen from the attack. He drove himself to the hospital and needed surgery for jaw and skull fractures, his attorney said.

Police said they did not file charges because statements by Gordon and witnesses didn't match. Security footage from the restaurant showed a commotion, but most of it was off camera.

According to the police report, Gordon identified Bennett from a video game on the Internet. But a witness did not identify Bennett as the person with the gun, police said.

In the lawsuit filed Dec. 16, Gordon also alleges that the players violated the NFL's player conduct policy.

Bennett said there was no gun and that he didn't hit anyone and that the video from the restaurant would confirm his version.

"I was an innocent bystander, trying to keep my teammates out of a situation like that," he said after a Chargers workout. "I don't even know why I was even brought into the situation. The only way I should be brought in was to give a report."

Gordon is also suing the restaurant chain, saying there wasn't adequate security.

A spokesman for IHOP commented on security in general but wouldn't address the specific allegations.

Tampa Bay cut Bennett in November, after Carnell "Cadillac" Williams returned from a serious injury. Bennett, a former 1,000-yard rusher, signed with San Diego, which faces the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday in the AFC divisional playoffs.

Davis later played for the St. Louis Rams.

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AP Sports Writer Bernie Wilson in San Diego contributed to this report.