What a wild ending to another crazy Sunday that was.
After several thrilling contests throughout the day, the New York Giants and Washington Commanders wrapped things up with another entertaining battle on Sunday Night Football that came right down to the wire…
And there was no shortage of controversy either!
Many were talking about the no-call on what clearly looked like pass interference in the end zone on the Commanders’ final offensive play.
However, many will argue that it shouldn’t have even come to that.
Just two plays earlier, the Washington Commanders actually punched the ball in on a Brian Robinson run from the one-yard line. But it was nullified by an illegal formation penalty on wide receiver Terry McLaurin, who apparently was not lined up properly.
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The call appeared to be the correct one, but the part that has NFL fans pissed off is the fact that McLaurin actually asked the official standing next to him on the sideline if he was lined up properly…TWICE!
And while it looks like the official clearly heard McLaurin and answered him, it also appears as though the man in stripes was just itching to throw the flag on the star wideout.
Check it out:
After the game, referee John Hussey was asked about the play and whether the official is responsible for telling McLaurin if he’s lined up correctly or not.
Let’s just say that his answers were not exactly convincing.
“When a player does point to the official like that, does the official have to say whether he’s at the line or not?” one reporter asked.
“Not typically, and the official could be doing other things, like counting the offense—there’s a multitude of different duties,” Hussey answered. “So, I can’t confirm whether the official even saw that or not, but he was clearly off the line of scrimmage.”
Hussey may not have seen it, but it’s quite clear that the official DID see McLaurin asking him whether he was lined up correctly before the snap. You can see them engaged in a conversation before the play. And immediately afterwards, McLaurin confronts the official, likely asking him why he confirmed he was lined up correctly, only to throw the flag seconds later.
McLaurin wasn’t the only one questioning the official in this instance. Social media was also wondering WTF happened:
Unfortunately, all of the complaints don’t matter, as the call nullified the touchdown, and the Commanders went on to lose the game, 20-12. Should Washington miss the playoffs by one game, you can look back on this as a key moment that derailed their once-promising season.
