Subscribe
Follow Us
NFL officiating is absolutely dreadful. During Sunday's game between the Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns, the referees missed two blatant calls on one play. As a result, it completely screwed over Chicago and Justin Fields.
Right before entering the half, the Bears decided to go for a last-second Hail Mary. Fields got the ball off. However, after he threw the ball, a Browns defender hit him late. Additionally, the ball clearly hit the ground before Cleveland covered it. Even so, the refs called it an interception.
Better look at the late hit on Justin Fields. I’m glad the broadcast showed this again. Blatant late hit that was also toward his head and neck.
(And that ball hit the ground — should not have been an interception.) @WCGridiron pic.twitter.com/j565UDTeoV
— Jack M Silverstein (@readjack) December 17, 2023
What are the referees looking at? How do we have multiple camera angles and access to replay and the refs still get it absolutely wrong? The NFL has a serious problem with its officiating and it's completely watering down the league. The Bears got absolutely robbed on this play and should have been given the penalty. At the very least, the officials cost Chicago three points entering half time.
On top of that, the late hit Justin Fields received was toward his head. It's one of the most dangerous hits a quarterback can take. And yet, the referees don't do anything about it. Typically, if a quarterback gets lightly touched by the defense the refs throw a flag. So, it's unclear how a penalty wasn't called on the Browns here.
Hopefully, this offseason the NFL makes some changes. It would help if the league makes the job full-time. That would give the referees more time to focus and improve. The entire league, not just the Bears, would greatly benefit with more consistent officiating.
