The old saying goes never let facts get in the way of a good story, and the football world is following that mantra. Following the New England Patriots come from behind victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars, everyone and their uncle is blaming the officiating for favoring New England. However, when you analyze the plays in question, that narrative completely falls apart. Unfortunately for the rest of the NFL, the referees do not favor the New England Patriots. The Pats are just that good.
Referees and the New England Patriots: There is no Favoritism
The Brandin Cooks Pass Interference
Let’s go play by play and analyze the key penalties called in the game. The first one came with 1:23 remaining in the second quarter. New England was trailing 14-3, looking to put some points on the board before the end of the half. Quarterback Tom Brady looked deep for receiver Brandin Cooks along the far sideline. The pass fell incomplete, but pass interference was called against cornerback A.J. Bouye.
There’s no reason for people to be upset over this call. Around 20-25 yards from the line of scrimmage, Bouye grabs Cooks and shoves him out of bounds. This happens well beyond five yards from the line of scrimmage, so this contact is clearly illegal. Brady’s pass landed in the vicinity of where Cooks would have been, so it’s not like the pass was uncatchable. If this call benefited any other team, nobody would care. Since it benefited the Patriots, it’s a conspiracy.
The Smiling Referee
Thanks to the aforementioned penalty, New England was able to score their first touchdown of the game just before the end of the half. After running back James White’s touchdown, a screencap emerged of one of the officials laughing and happy. Out of context, this appeared to be a sign of clear favoritism from the Patriots. In context, the refs reaction means nothing of the sort.
Following White’s touchdown, Jaguars linebacker Myles Jack threw White to the ground long after the play was over. When White got back up, Jack shoved him again. A small shouting match ensued causing one of the officials to break up White and Jack. Another official went to break up what appeared to be another skirmish. However, when he went to separate the players, he saw it was actually two New England linemen physically celebrating. The referee then laughed at the mistake, which led to the out of context video clip circulating the internet.
For the record, Jack wasn’t penalized for the late hit or the ensuing shoving. Just in case anyone was wondering.
The Dion Lewis Fumble
The Patriots found themselves down 20-10 early in the fourth quarter and turned to trickery. Wide receiver Danny Amendola threw a pass to running back Dion Lewis, catching the Jaguars off guard. It looked to be a big play for the Patriots before Myles Jack ripped the ball out of Lewis’ hands. Jack and Lewis both fell to the ground and Jack was marked down.
The internet believes that Jack was never touched, and should have returned the fumble for a touchdown. However, if you actually watch the highlight, it’s hard to defend that claim. For one, Lewis and Jack went down in a heap together. As long as any part of Lewis touched Jack when Jack gains possession of the fumble, the play is over. Jack did eventually roll away from Lewis, but the video evidence doesn’t show Jack gaining possession once Lewis stops touching him. This was the right call.
If the league were blatantly trying to make the Patriots win, they would have overturned the fumble. Replay shows Lewis may have regained control after losing the ball by pinning the ball against his hip as he went to the ground. It wasn’t indisputable evidence, but having the ball pinned has been ruled as control before. In the end, the referees made the (correct) decision to award the Jaguars the ball.
The Missed Holding Penalty
New England had just finished their comeback, and now led 24-20 facing third and nine with 1:38 left in the game. A first down would send the Patriots to the Super Bowl. Lewis took the handoff and ripped off a first down run to seal the game. New England wins, but upon replay it appears that the refs missed a holding call on tight end Dwayne Allen.
The angry mob is correct about this one. Allen clearly held Jack, and it should have been penalized. However, that’s the nature of the game. Holding could be called on literally every play of the game, and every single game features half a dozen holding penalties that go uncalled on both sides.
There’s a sizable amount of evidence to support this. Without searching too hard, let’s take a look at the NFL’s official game highlight video. At the five minute mark of the video, the Jaguars are facing third and one from the Patriots six. Running back Leonard Fournette takes the ball and picks up three yards and the first down.
However, fullback Tommy Bohanon grabs a bit of defensive tackle Ricky Jean-Francois’s jersey. Francois gets turned around, and Bohanon blocks him in the back as Jean-Francois is trying to move towards the play. Both of these could be called penalties, which would have likely ended Jacksonville’s drive. There’s no doubt that there’s a dozen more plays like this for both team, if someone wanted to look for them. Sometimes flags don’t get called in the trenches. That’s football. The biggest difference between the non-call on Jean-Francios and the non-call on Allen is four points. Bohanon’s hold was the difference between a touchdown and a field goal, while Allen’s came when the game was all but decided. (No, Blake Bortles was not going to lead a touchdown drive with 1:30 left and no timeouts).
The Patriots Are Just That Good
New England has just clinched its third Super Bowl appearance in four years for the second time in the Brady Era. They win at an absurd rate, and it’s natural to assume that they must get some help. But it’s foolish to think that the same league that handed out Deflategate and Spygate is the same league that wants New England to win every game they play. Officiating is notoriously uneven, but the referees do not favor the New England Patriots. It’s time to stop making excuses, the Patriots are just better than the competition.
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