Usually, excuses from players and coaches are frowned upon. But, in this instance, it's quite understandable.
During Monday night's game between the Houston Texans and Oakland Raiders in Mexico City, Brock Osweiler faced an obstacle other than the opposing defense. On a number of plays, a green laser pointer was shined on Osweiler's face. It wasn't used as prevalently in the second half, but its usage was never fully stopped by stadium security.
After the game, Osweiler was understandably frustrated. From the Houston Chronicle's Aaron Wilson:
Osweiler characterized the situation as “very distracting,” during a 27-20 defeat to the Oakland Raiders.
“I'm still gathering information on what exactly took place, but all I know at this point is when we were out there on the field on offense, there were multiple times I saw a green laser coming from the stands,” Osweiler said. “There was a couple of times it definitely hit me in the eye. And it was very noticeable.
“I never want to say one thing is a difference-maker, but certainly, having a laser zoomed in on your eyeball definitely affects how you play a game.”
Despite the distraction, Osweiler had one of his better games this season. Houston's signal caller completed 26 of 39 passes for 243 yards, earning a 81.5 QB rating. It should be noted that the laser pointer wasn't shined on Osweiler when he threw his lone interception, or the other two passes that went directly to members of the Raiders (who subsequently dropped them).
Do better, NFL
Still, this isn't the best look for the NFL:
“I've never experienced a laser being shined in my eyeball during a football game, let alone a professional football game in the National Football League,” Osweiler said. “So, I think that was certainly disappointing. At the end of the day, that's not why we lost the game. That was just one small factor, but it certainly affected how I was playing.”
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