The NFL is taking a look in the mirror after an officiating botch job that led to the Seattle Seahawks making the playoffs last week.
According to a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, following a host of questionable or downright incorrect calls in the Seahawks overtime win over the Rams, “multiple executives and coaches said the NFL needs to reevaluate how it chooses and trains its officiating staff for future seasons.”
Those executives and coaches pointe out a multitude of incorrect calls which kept the Detroit Lions out of the playoffs and let the Seahawks in to face the 49ers.
One source told Schefter it was, “the worst officiated game of the year.’”
They outlined the following botched calls:
- A running into the kicker call in the fourth quarter between Rams defensive end Jonah Williams and Seahawks punter Michael Dickson. Per Schefter:
The rules stipulate that running into the kicker should not be called if the defender “is pushed or blocked [causing a change of direction] into the kicker.” Replays showed that Williams was pushed into Dickson, but officials called running into the kicker, giving the Seahawks a first down and enabling them to continue a fourth-quarter drive that resulted in a tying field goal.
A league official told ESPN that the official who threw the flag did not have an angle that allowed him to see Williams being blocked into Dickson.
- There was a missed unsportsmanlike conduct in the fourth quarter. After Jalen Ramsey hit Geno Smith out of bounds and got an unnecessary roughness call, DK Metcalf poked Ramsey’s face “in clear sight of the back judge,” but wasn’t penalized.
- A potential intentional grounding at the start of overtime wasn’t called. Geno Smith threw a ball which landed at Seattle’s 23-yard line, at least 12 yards short of the nearest receiver, tight end Noah Fant, who was at the 35-yard line.
- Then Quandre Diggs picked off Baker Mayfield in overtime, and Diggs pointed at Bobby Wagner, but wasn’t called for a taunting call.
It was a game that could affect the league’s process for hiring and training officials.
Per Schefter: “One source told ESPN this week that the NFL must do a better job of screening, hiring and training its officials; the league can’t have games in which teams’ seasons are on the line and have questionable and impactful calls such as the ones in the Rams-Seahawks Week 18 game.”