'NFL on CBS' rules analyst Gene Steratore on late penalty in Super Bowl: 'It needs to be called'

Ever since the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl against the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35, there have been complaints from fans about the officiating.

Specifically, a defensive holding call against Philadelphia’s James Bradberry on Chiefs wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster with 1:54 left in the game, deep in the Eagles defensive red zone. The flag wiped out a third-down incompletion to Smith-Schuster from quarterback Patrick Mahomes and resulted in a Chiefs first down. Instead of being forced to kick a short field goal at that point, the Chiefs were able to bleed the clock with the fresh set of downs. Kicker Harrison Butker added the game-winning points with just eight seconds left on the clock.

Bradberry holding Juju’s jersey as he attempts to get out of his break. This is by rule a hold. The idea that the refs should have just ignored this because it’s the Super Bowl is silly. Like it or not, it’s the correct call.#SuperBowl #NFL pic.twitter.com/ICR1OEuB3H

— Jack Sperry (@jack_sperry) February 13, 2023

Few dispute that, by the letter of the law, Bradberry was guilty of a penalty. Most fans wouldn’t have complained about the call if it wasn’t at such a pivotal moment. But given that the game was in the balance, a wave of criticism has hit the officiating crew for calling what was perceived to be a minor infraction at a pivotal time.

CBS rules analyst and former NFL official Gene Steratore disagrees with that assessment. Appearing on his weekly Tuesday morning “Zebra Talk” segment on WDVE, Steratore (a Uniontown native and Washington County resident) insisted that Bradberry’s seemingly minor restriction on Smith-Schuster materially affected the rest of the route, and Mahomes’ ability to connect on the pass.

“When you have a defensive-holding type of play like that, that happens in the first step or two of a play, that window and sequence that happens gets tainted,” Steratore said.

Steratore explained that quarterbacks often won’t even bother to make that throw when they see a hold like that because they feel the play has been immediately compromised.

“When the quarterback looks at that little brief hold early, you’ll watch that quarterback leave and go to his second progression because he knows that little bit of a hold changed that dynamic in the detail of his completion, or his ability to make that play successful over there unsuccessful. So he’ll leave it. So it’s a defensive holding for that reason,” Steratore said.

Steratore was calling the game on radio since Fox had the broadcast. Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner was on the call with him for Westwood One. And Steratore said that Warner immediately recognized the play as a hold.

Steratore said of the replays of the infraction, “When we watch it, it doesn’t appear to be that big.” But he added, “Because this play is early in its development, it has too many other unintended consequences that are going to follow that don’t allow the play to end up how it should. So it needs to be called.”

As far as some other officiating controversies from that game:

• Steratore said he disagreed with a decision to overturn DeVonta Smith’s 35-yard catch late in the first half. It would’ve given Philadelphia first-and-10 on the Kansas City 13 up a touchdown with a minute to play in the second quarter.

“I thought it was a catch. It felt like it,” Steratore said. “I felt like that it was an incorrect ruling by the replay officials.”

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• Another debate was Dallas Goedert’s first-down catch in the third quarter for Philadelphia on a third-and-14. It was initially ruled a catch. Then after some awkward attempts to snap the next play, it was eventually reviewed.

Getting to the booth may have been clunky. Once it was there, though, Steratore said that he felt the crew eventually got the call right by allowing the catch to stand.

“That one, I felt OK with,” Stertaore said.

• Regarding what was initially ruled as the second fumble recovery for a score of the game by Kansas City linebacker Nick Bolton, Steratore claimed that was a good overturn by the replay officials. He felt like there wasn’t enough time to indicate a completed catch, or a football move, before running back Miles Sanders lost possession on the shot which jarred the ball free.

“If you watch that one in real time, it was a bang-bang play. There is not a lot there. That’s the distortion of replay. That’s why we need to not slow this thing down so much, because it gives a false answer,” Steratore said.

In my opinion, that’s the only debate where I’ll disagree with Steratore. I’m with him on the other three. I don’t know where the answer was false based on the replay. I thought Sanders had possession and time to make a move before he lost the ball. He just didn’t do it. So I thought the fumble should’ve stood.

And that’s coming from someone who — erroneously — picked the Eagles to win.