Last night, they were handed the Lombardi Trophy when a holding call effectively ended the game.
Both penalties were arguably legitimate. In the Chiefs' AFC championship game against Cincinnati, a Bengal shoved a runner out of bounds. Last night, replays showed a momentary clutch of jersey, a hold by an Eagles defender.
But should those infractions have decided the outcomes? Because that's what happened. The refs threw flags, and the games were over. The Chiefs are the champions of football, thanks to their friends in stripes.
Moreover, in both cases, the final plays seemed to come under an expanding referee microscope. In the game against Cincinnati, a earlier sideline roughing incident against KC was overlooked. And last night, the chaos at the line of scrimmage was, as usual, full of holding calls that didn't get flagged. That's the nature of the NFL. Good players get away with it.
Full disclosure: As a Giants fan, I love watching the Eagles get screwed. Bring it on, refs. And suck on it, Philly. Maybe next year, losers!
That said, Eagles fans today have reason to be furious over a shit ending to what should have been a great Super Bowl. The game was barreling toward an epic finish: Philly had held the Chiefs to a field goal, and their office would have nearly two minutes to mount a comeback. The game could have gone into overtime, and today we could be talking about one of the greatest Super Bowls in memory. Honestly, the Eagles earned that chance.
Instead, they were screwed on a technicality, left to watch the clock tick down to nothing - due to a holding call on what seemed an uncatchable throw, far beyond the receivers' range.
I don't know how the NFL solves this issue. One can say that a penalty is a penalty, and when a ref sees a hold, he must throw the flag, case closed.
But few penalties are more ubiquitous and arbitrary. Holds happen on practically every play. At some point, especially with a game on the line, the refs must let the players play. Last night, that flag should have been picked up and disregarded. The game, the players, the fans, everybody, even Rhianna's future baby - they all deserved a better outcome.
On that note, go to hell, NFL. Tomorrow, the camps begin opening. No more Mahomes. From now on, Anthony Volpe!
So the guy said he did commit a hold and had hoped the ref would let him get away with it. I didn't watch the game except for a few minutes near the end, managing to tune in just in time for the "holding" replay. This was a lame call. Really lame. At least the call in the KC-Cincy game was legit. This was pathetic. I've seen much more egregious penalties go uncalled. I think the defender was just trying to quell the outrage when he talked after the game.
ReplyDeleteI expect next year a defender will be called for roughing the passer because he blew him a kiss or something.
On another note, Jeter is joining Fox as a baseball commentator, joining A-Rod again after all these years. They even pretended everything was Jake between them at the presser, but we know Jeter never, ever, lets go of any slight, real or imagined. So this might get interesting.
Seeing that penalty last night...the word "rigged" comes to mind...
ReplyDeleteWell, now, you know for sure that the NFL would never ever do anything underhanded to ensure the success of an older storied franchise.
ReplyDeleteOf course not. How do any of you still watch that sport?
Which is the stories franchise? Eagles been around a lot longer than the Chiefs.
ReplyDeleteWeren't the Chiefs in the AFL? My memory is hazy, but I think so.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if refs have DraftKings accounts? Just axin'.
I just want to say that the entire SB has become such an overhyped spectacle it makes MLB look like a serene, bucolic walk in the park by comparison. That was perfectly exemplified by 3 national anthems ( isn’t one enough? Or maybe too much?) and the ludicrous, lazy, lip-synced halftime performance farce that had less energy than Hicks chasing a ball down in left field.
ReplyDeleteBoth are "storied" franchices, but the Chiefs have won before so the Eagles are just gonna have to eat a steady diet of suck it.
ReplyDeleteBut then, of course, the Eagles did beat the fucking Patriots in SB52. So I may have absolutely no idea what I'm talking about.
That's never stopped me from spouting off before.
Suck it NFL.
I feel your pain El Duque ,
ReplyDeleteBUT as a lifelong Giants fan, I say Flock the Eagles.
Now I hate the 'Boys more Than the Eaglets and I think that Dak is the most overrated QB of this Century, but he won the Walter Payton Award, a truly great thing named after a truly great man and those D-Bags BOOED him.
Stay Classy Philly!!
At that moment I decided to cheer for them.
Mahomes is a great low-key young man, which other than having a ditzy wife and brother, makes him a hero in this day and age.
Plus he obviously played through a ton of pain.
The fact that my wife won $750. from the winning square at the end of the game had nothing to do with it.
I swear on my Mark Bavaro jersey.
You’re speaking with a man who has one item on his Bucket List - to defecate on the cowboys logo on the 50 yard line at cowboys stadium. For me, it’s more of a Fuck It List than a Bucket List.
ReplyDeleteUh, no. Nope. The referees did not decide that game. Philly blew it.
ReplyDeleteIf we're going to cry over bad calls, you don't need to look too far to see that a fumble that initially led to a Chief's TD was called a dropped pass and not a fumble. Terrible call there.
Then, to make matters worse, Goedert caught a critical pass on third down when he was clearly not in control of the ball as he stepped out of bounds.
It works both ways.
But in the end, the Chiefs played flawless ball in the second half and a porous Philly defense allowed that to happen, especially on two touchdowns where the receiver had no defender within ten yards. And the punt runback? Should not have happened. Just plain bad defense put the Eagles in that position to lose the game.
That said, bring on the boys of summer.
Well, Dick, I could just say you're being a dick, but I'd be wrong. You're right. And summer cannot come soon enough.
ReplyDeleteUMM,
ReplyDeleteJM, Mr. Allen's name is Dick so he is one.*
*Example of never ending loop of logic
It’s been a long time since my Dick had this much attention
ReplyDeleteAnd...I gotta go with Dick, too.
ReplyDeletePhilly let KC hang around and hang around. The Chiefs made mondo adjustments at halftime—the Iggles did not.
(By the by, just for the record: The Igs started in 1933, replacing the old Frankford Yellow Jackets. The Chiefs, as the Original Dallas Texans, in the old AFL.)
The call was regrettable there. But it was still a great game, and I still don't think Philly gets an automatic tie if they have more time.
For that matter, I think there should have been more questioning of the KC decision NOT to take the easy touchdown. So much can go wrong on a FG. I would've scored and taken my chances...but then, I'm not Andy Reid. Hard to argue with how he played it.
I DON'T hate Philly. My wife's from there—and SHE hates it. But not me. Old-style, Eastern city with a great history. Don't have anything against KC, either. (Though I admit: I'm glad we won't be seeing the Empire State Building in green-and-white tonight.)
But last night, Philly needed to keep the pedal to the metal. They didn't...
One last football note: The NFL should re-ban the once banned play of having guys push the ballcarrier over the line for a touchdown or first down.
ReplyDeleteThis will result in very, very serious injuries one day—maybe terrible spinal injuries. It was banned in the first place, I think, when Teddy Roosevelt threatened to shut down college football unless they cleaned up the game.
Also...it seems like a waste. You have a guy like Hurts who can throw like he does and run like he does, and you use him to do what the Fridge could do? Why?
And...after they had done it successfully 3 or 4 times, why not have Hurts step back and throw a quick out to somebody? Chances are it goes for a TD.
f
@Hoss...that is why they outlawed the Flying Wedge...
ReplyDeleteKC was at the EGals 15 when they got the penalty, it's quite likely they make that field goal anyway
ReplyDelete