A pool reporter was selected as the media representative tasked with interviewing the referee after Sunday’s game, and there were plenty of questions to get through.
It was that kind of game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Jacksonville Jaguars. And to hear some Steelers players tell it, the officiating played no small part in the Jaguars’ 20-10 win.
“The refs were killing us the whole game,” Steelers receiver Diontae Johnson said.
“They were calling some stupid stuff. They should get fined for making terrible calls. That’s how (ticked) I am. They cost us the game.
“They wanted them to win. Everything was in their favor. They were getting every little call.”
Among the most egregious calls the Steelers were upset about:
• An offsides penalty on Isaac Seumalo during a field-goal attempt with 6 seconds left in the first half, negating Chris Boswell’s successful kick (he missed from 61 yards moments later).
• That there was no roughing the passer flag on Jaguars defensive lineman Adam Gotsis during the play in which Kenny Pickett suffered a rib injury that knocked him out of the game.
• That there was a roughing the passer penalty called on Steelers safety Keanu Neal earlier in the first half for a play in which Neal’s actions appeared far less harsh than Gotsis’.
• A facemask flag on Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. despite replays showing it was Jaguars running back Travis Etienne who instead was grabbing Porter Jr.’s facemask.
It was the call on Seumalo that most perplexed the Steelers. Down judge Fred Bryan ruled Seumalo was lined up in the neutral zone, but CBS television replays did not appear to prove that was the case.
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“I feel like I lined up in the same spot I did for the last eight years,” said Seumalo, who entered the league in 2016.
“Obviously, the refs saw something different. I’m sure in the next couple of days we’ll get a nice little apology from them, and that will warm my heart.”
If the transcript provided by the league of the answer referee Alan Eck provided to the pool reporter asking for an explanation is any indication, the Steelers might not be getting that apology from the league.
“The right guard was lined up in the neutral zone,” Eck said. “His head was over the back edge of the ball, so by rule that’s an offensive offside foul.
“It was a judgment call,” Eck said after a follow-up question. “It was obvious on the field, so we went ahead and called it.”
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin was visibly incredulous by the call, and he was seen expressing his agitation with the line judge stationed on the Steelers’ side of the field.
“I hadn’t seen that called in 17 years of standing on the sidelines — aligned offsides on a guard on a field-goal protection,” Tomlin said. “So it didn’t matter what they said. I have never seen that.”
Johnson also seemed most perturbed by the call on Seumalo, saying things that assuredly will end up earning him a fine from the league.
“They (the officials) must have got paid good today or something,” Johnson said, “but that field goal, that hurt us, coming into the half. We needed that.”
The Steelers also needed their starting quarterback in the second half, but they did not have Pickett because of the injury suffered when Gotsis drove him into the ground. The incident was doubly painful for the Steelers’ chances of winning because, by rule, the Steelers were charged a timeout for having an injured player inside the final 2 minutes of a half.
The juxtaposition of Gostis’ hit, one that appeared to be delivered late, coming less than an hour after Neal seemed to make every effort to roll off Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence, struck a chord with the Steelers.
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“It was the wrong call,” Steelers linebacker Alex Highsmith said of the penalty on Neal. “He didn’t put his body weight on him. We just have to control what we can control and move on to the next down.”
The final sentiment was a common theme in the Steelers locker room after the game. After all, in four days the Steelers have to play the Tennessee Titans.
“All we can do is control what we can control,” Neal said. “There’s nothing we can do about calls. They’re in the past now.”
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