A recap of all that was stupid during the 14th weekend of the 2014 NFL season…
The stupidest combo pack of calls
“The reason why we lost is the refs didn’t go our way,” said Jamaal Charles after the Chiefs were screwed by two questionable calls from rookie referee Craig Wrolstad’s crew during the second half of a three-point loss to the Cardinals.
He’s got a point.
Call 1: Tight end Anthony Fasano has this third-quarter touchdown wiped out by a quasi-phantom offensive pass interference penalty…
Call 2: Tight end Travis Kelce is ruled to have fumbled at the tail end of a 19-yard reception in the fourth quarter…
What’s most ridiculous about the Kelce call is it came from a review after the initial ruling was that Kelce was down by contact. To go under the hood and determine that there was indisputable evidence that the call on the field was wrong is just insane.
Officiating czar Dean Blandino defended the decision to overturn, but his explanation still leaves me wondering about evidence. And the Fasano call — which basically would have put the game away — is hard to rationalize.
The stupidest last-gasp strategy
But the Chiefs still had 69 seconds to move about 40-45 yards to get into field position to tie the game. And the calamity that transpired from that point forward was all on them.
Quarterback Alex Smith completed his first two passes of that drive for a grand total of six yards. In both cases, all of KC’s receivers ran hilariously short routes for a team needing a big play. Six yards, 27 seconds off the clock.
On third down, Smith threw a six-yard pass in the middle of the field. It gave them a fresh set of downs, but it cost them 20 more seconds. That’s three plays, 12 yards and 47 seconds off the clock.
Rather than spike it on the next play — which was stupid because they didn’t need all four downs at that point — they wasted an extra 10 seconds trying to get organized before Smith threw an incomplete pass half a dozen yards behind the line of scrimmage.
Next play, with time to prepare: False start penalty from left tackle Eric Fisher. Then Smith throws another incomplete pass at the line of scrimmage.
He wouldn’t throw a ball beyond five yards until it was 3rd-and-15 on their own 31-yard line with 16 seconds to play. In other words, Hail Mary territory.
That’s just dumb.
The stupidest overreaction
Some Bills players — namely Aaron Williams — and fans are pissed because two officials gave each other props after a Broncos touchdown Sunday at Mile High.
No excuse for my performance but can't win playing 16 vs 11 thought I seen it all Smh https://t.co/CrfVO2YxA6
— Aaron Williams (@ajwilliams23) December 8, 2014
I understand the frustration, but it’s clear — as the league stated Monday — that they were merely acknowledging agreement on the call. And the simple reality is that if the officials were conspiring against you, the last thing they’d want to do is publicly give each other props.
The stupidest fourth-down decision
Mike McCoy and the Chargers punted on a 4th-and-4 from midfield down nine points midway through the fourth quarter. Is that some sort of sick joke?
The other stupidest fourth-down decision
Doug Marrone and the Bills punted on a 4th-and-2 from their own 16-yard line down seven points with five minutes left in the fourth quarter. Do coaches not realize that by doing this they’re severely decreasing their chances of winning the game?
The stupidest offensive strategy
Against a Ravens defense missing top run-stuffer Haloti Ngata, the Dolphins saw running back Lamar Miller run for 15 yards on the first play from scrimmage and then pick up nine more on a screen two plays later.
From that point forward, Miller received only nine carries.
He also opened the second half with a 10-yard run but was given the ball only twice the rest of the game.
This would make some sense if the Dolphins were trailing big, but they led 10-7 at halftime! Unacceptable, Bill Lazor.
The stupidest penalty
An obvious one this week. Sorry, Bill Leavy, but this isn’t unnecessary roughness on Brandon Browner…
No, that’s a textbook hit. Problem is the officials are more afraid of missing an illegal call than making a wrong call. The chips are stacked against them with the emphasis the league is making on hits on defenseless receivers, and they’re being asked to do the impossible on high-speed plays without the benefit of replay.
Something tells me that’ll change soon, because this simply isn’t fair.
