The Washington Commanders were on the tough end of a brutal roughing the passer call in Week 9 against the Patriots, and the postgame explanation from the officials doesn't make it a whole lot better.
It's unclear what, exactly, Washington Commanders defensive end KJ Henry was supposed to do while sacking Mac Jones. While it didn't appear any illegal contact took place, here's the reasoning provided by the officials, via Nicki Jhabvala.
Commanders survive highly questionable roughing the passer call
Henry was flagged for “coming down with forceable contact, chest-to-chest” and not “performing one of those acts to remove most of the body weight – a gator roll or a clear to the side when was coming in.”
Commanders fans have been no stranger to watching quarterbacks get sacked, as Sam Howell leads the NFL in that category, but Howell has never been the beneficiary of a call like this. It would go a long way if officials or a league review board came out and corrected the call, but that seems unlikely to happen.
Commanders coaches, players and fans were naturally upset at the call, as Henry didn't go too high or too low and didn't drive Mac Jones into the ground. Simply landing on top of a quarterback rarely results in a penalty, but it did in this one.
Luckily for the Commanders, the officials didn't cost them the win in the Week 9 battle with the Patriots, despite the call leading to points for the Patriots. Washington is now 4-5 on the season, keeping the hopes for a potential playoff berth alive.
The Commanders will travel to Seattle to take on the Seahawks in Week 10 of the 2023 NFL season.
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