NFL Referees Should Be Fired For Making These Ridiculous Calls

Darren - October 14, 2022

NFL Referees Should Be Fired For Making These Ridiculous Calls

Darren - October 14, 2022

The “Fail Mary” (2012)

There is a significant difference in quality between NFL officials and their college counterparts. The league found this out to its cost in 2012 when the former group went on strike. Then the NFL brought in a bunch of replacement referees who made many ridiculous decisions that hurt teams (via The Ringer).

The Packers came off on the wrong end of a terrible call against Seattle. Russell Wilson launched a Hail Mary pass toward the endzone as the Seahawks trailed. But Golden Tate and M.D. Jennings both caught the ball. Meanwhile, Tate illegally disrupted a Green Bay player but the referee awarded him the touchdown anyway.

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What’s A Catch? (2015)

After two years, the NFL changed its mind about one of the most controversial decisions of the past decade. Dez Bryant infamously caught the ball and maintained possession for the Cowboys. But the referee disagreed and said that he lost control in a costly moment for Dallas (via NBC Sports).

This immediately ignited an intense debate about what constitutes a successful catch. Eventually, the NFL clarified the rules because they didn’t want to see more ridiculous decisions. It didn’t help Bryant or his franchise but it was important for wide receivers around the league.

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Super Bowl XL

This remains one of the most shambolic sporting events in U.S. history. Fans expect at least one poor call in every game because human error exists. But the number of ridiculous decisions in Super Bowl XL was beyond belief. Many fans accused the NFL of fixing the game because it was insane.

Ben Roethlisberger’s touchdown in the second quarter was one of the most controversial moments. Then there was a holding penalty that could have gone either way but the Seahawks suffered. Seattle fans resented the officials because they feel they lost a massive opportunity (via Sports Illustrated).

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Orlando Brown’s Eye

Technically this wasn’t a bad call but it deserves a place on this list. The offensive tackle played for the Cleveland Browns against the Jaguars in 1999. During the game, the referee threw the penalty marker toward the area where the offense took place. But somehow it hit Brown in the eye and injured him (via Bleacher Report).

He reacted aggressively and shoved referee Jeff Triplette. The NFL hit him with a suspension for this action but it didn’t matter. That’s because Brown required surgeries to repair the damage to his eye and missed the next couple of seasons. Then the NFL changed one of their ridiculous decisions to make the game safer.

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Don’t Hurt Tom! (2022)

This is one of several bad calls from the same weekend that made headlines. However, the fact that Tom Brady was involved had an even bigger impact. Referee Jerome Boger made one of the most ridiculous decisions of his long and controversial career. He cited Grady Jarrett for roughing the passer after an obviously clean sack on the quarterback.

Context is important because this came in the aftermath of Tua Tagovailoa’s horrendous on-field seizure. But that doesn’t excuse Boger’s awful call or silence the conspiracy theorists. Many fans think that Brady receives extensive favoritism but this was egregious (via The Guardian).

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NFL Referees Should Be Fired For Making These Ridiculous Calls