Tag: referee

Referee for NFC championship has dubious history with Commanders

Many Washington fans will remember this referee from Week 15.

The Washington Commanders have won seven consecutive games heading into Sunday’s NFC championship game in Philadelphia against the Eagles. However, that winning streak almost ended at one back in Week 15 when the Commanders escaped New Orleans with a 20-19 victory.

Washington controlled the game, leading 14-0, but the game came down to the final play. As time expired, the Saints scored a touchdown to make it 20-19. Instead of going for the tie, New Orleans interim coach Darren Rizzi went for the two-point conversion and win. The pass fell incomplete, and Washington held on for the victory.

The Saints should have never been in position to attempt the two-point conversion. Here’s why.

The officials stopped the clock with nine seconds remaining for about four seconds, allowing the Saints to spike the ball and have one more play. This could have cost Washington the game. Fortunately, the Commanders won, and the NFL never explained the officiating miscue.

Shawn Hochuli was the referee that day. The NFL released referee assignments for this week’s championship games, and Hochuli’s crew will be in Philadelphia.

Here’s what Hochuli said about the officiating error after that game.

“The covering official mistakenly stopped the clock in that situation,” he said. “The clock should not have stopped.”

Even more unfortunate, Hochuli said it wasn’t reviewable.

“No, it’s not a situation that is reviewable.”

That was it.

Needless to say, Hochuli’s history with Washington is questionable. According to X user @nflrefstats1, 48% of the Commanders’ offensive holding calls this season came in the two games Hochuli and Alex Kemp officiated. Kemp is working with Hochuli’s crew this weekend. 

Also, the Eagles are 6-0 in games Hochuli has officiated under head coach Nick Sirianni.

Here are some more interesting numbers, courtesy of Glenn Erby of Eagles Wire.

Hochuli has been one of the referees with the highest penalty count this season and tends to average high numbers in the games he calls. So far this season, he has called 16 games, penalizing the home team 108 times and the visitors 113 times. Hochuli has averaged 13 penalties per game, 48.87% on the home team, and the home team has won 62.50% of the games he has called.

These numbers don’t indicate what will happen Sunday, but they do provide some critical context ahead of the Commanders’ and Eagles’ third meeting of the season.

Chiefs receive favorable referee selection for playoff matchup vs. Texans

The Kansas City #Chiefs have a 6-0 record in games called by the referee who will officiate their playoff matchup against the Houston #Texans.

Despite earning a league-best 15-2 regular season record in 2024 and back-to-back Super Bowl wins over the last two years, the Kansas City Chiefs remain among the most highly criticized teams in the NFL.

Some fans claim that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has used his power as the league’s head executive to influence officiating, manipulate opposing teams’ performances, and alter the script to rig games in favor of the Chiefs.

Those narratives may continue to be perpetuated after the NFL announced that referee Clay Martin will officiate Kansas City’s upcoming divisional round matchup against the Houston Texans on Saturday, January 18.

According to a post by Complex Sports on Twitter, the Chiefs have a 6-0 record when Martin officiates their games.

To the average fan, it should be obvious that Kansas City’s success with Martin calling their games is not part of a league-wide conspiracy, but is rather a result of the Chiefs’ overall dominance in the Patrick Mahomes era.

Footage proves officials cost Steelers critical on 4th down vs Ravens

Officiating blunders on a critical 4th down cost the Steelers a chance at a comeback against the Ravens in the Wild-Card game.

Few things are certain in life: death, taxes, and officials screwing over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

No one would argue that the Mike Tomlin-led Steelers looked terrible against the Ravens on Wild-Card Saturday. However, the referees made Baltimore’s victory an even harder pill to swallow.

The terrible officiating was most evident on a critical 4th down attempt by Baltimore, as the Steelers were trying to mount a seemingly impossible 21-point comeback.

Footage from the play in question has been circulating on social media, highlighting how officials failed to allow the Pittsburgh Steelers to make a legal substitution after the Ravens swapped into a heavier offensive package.

While the Steelers ultimately fell victim to their own shortcomings, the missed opportunity to stage a second-half comeback—thanks to officiating blunders—will leave a bad taste in fans’ mouths for a long time.

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Ref for Broncos-Bills playoff game has crazy history with Sean Payton

Bill Vinovich’s crew known for the no-call that hurt Sean Payton’s Saints in the 2018 playoffs will call the Broncos-Bills game on Sunday.

The NFL has assigned a controversial referee for the Wild Card playoff game between the Denver Broncos and Buffalo Bills this week.

Bill Vinovich and his crew will serve as the officials for the Broncos-Bills game in Buffalo. Vinovich has been the referee in a Super Bowl, but he is best-known for a no-call that knocked Sean Payton out of the 2018 NFL playoffs.

In the 2018 NFC championship game, Vinovich’s crew missed a blatant pass interference foul that helped the Los Angeles Rams defeat the New Orleans Saints, who were coached by Payton at the time. The NFL has not given Vinovich any games in New Orleans since that no-call.

Interestingly, Vinovich was also the official for the Broncos-Bills game on Monday Night Football last season. After Buffalo was penalized for having too many men on the field, Denver kicker Wil Lutz got a second chance for a game-winning field goal and converted in a 24-22 victory on the road.

The Broncos benefited from Vinovich’s officiating against the Bills last year, but they are 5-10 all-time with him as the ref, as Andrew Mason of DenverSports.com pointed out on Twitter/X. One of those 10 losses was Denver’s heartbreaking playoff defeat to the Baltimore Ravens in 2013.

The Broncos have surrendered the 10th-most penalty yards (941) in the NFL this season, so the Vinovich assignment is a positive from that perspective. Vinovich’s crew has thrown the second-fewest penalty markers this season (207), only trailing the John Hussey crew (201).

Sunday’s game will be nationally televised on CBS. Denver is considered a big underdog against Buffalo.

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Former NFL head coach says Saints got away with foul on game-winning FG block

Former NFL head coach Jay Gruden says the Saints got away with a foul on their game-winning field goal block. Check the tape for yourself:


There’s no love lost between Jay Gruden and the New York Giants — he coached against them with Washington from 2014 to 2019, going 4-7. The second-to-last game he coached was a 24-3 loss to Big Blue. But the former NFL head coach put the Giants’ close loss to the New Orleans Saints under a microscope when studying this week’s games, and he says the Saints may have gotten away with a penalty on their game-winning blocked field goal.

Gruden highlighted two Saints defensive linemen on the field goal try, Payton Turner and Nathan Shepherd, who pulled and pushed down the left guard and center, creating a gap for Bryan Bresee to leap through, arms extended for the block. That could count as a block in the back or defensive holding, but obviously no penalty was called this time.

“This referee is saying ‘Oh yeah that’s a flag, I got it,'” Gruden said, noticing the umpire’s hand dive into his pocket to grab a penalty marker. But the official decided to keep the flag where it was, and the play stood as a game-winner for New Orleans.

It’s not like referee Clete Blakeman and his crew hadn’t thrown many flags that day. They had fouled the Saints six times for a loss of 40 yards. But they did hit the Giants a dozen times for a staggering 112 penalty yards. They lived up to their reputation as one of the NFL’s most flag-happy officiating crews. So maybe the Saints did get away with one here. Either way, they got a win, and that’s what will be remembered.

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NFL assigns Brad Allen as referee for Rams vs. Saints

The NFL has assigned Brad Allen as the referee for the Saints vs. Rams matchup in Week 13. His crew is known for keeping their flags in their pockets:

The New Orleans Saints will remain at home this week for a third straight game (and a fourth straight week with the bye) to take on the Los Angeles Rams, and the referee has been announced as Brad Allen for this matchup. Allen has been one of the least interfering referees this season and has been pretty even in his calls for both home and away teams as well.

In games he has been the head referee, the Rams have a 6-5 record, and the Saints have a 5-4 record, so both are favorable but near even. Allen has already called a Rams game this season as well, their matchup with the Green Bay Packers, which ended in a Packers victory. In that game, he called 7 penalties for 39 yards against the Packers, and 5 penalties for 30 yards against the Rams, which is a very stingy game by all accounts.

So far this season, he has the second least penalty yards given overall with 860, and the only referee with less is John Hussey (who has been referee for two less games this season). He also has the fourth-fewest flags thrown on the season (the least of referees with at least 11 games called in 2024), and the third least flags per game (11.27).

Of those 11.27 flags, 5.09 per game were called against the home team, while 6.18 per game were called against the away team, so the Saints may end with a slight advantage there, but very minimal if so. Overall, Allen has been stingy with his flags this season, which could be good or bad, depending on how many actually occur on the field.

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NFL assigns one of the most penalty-happy referees to Saints vs. Browns

The NFL has assigned one of the most penalty-happy refereeing crews to officiate Sunday’s matchup between the New Orleans Saints and the Cleveland Browns:

The NFL has assigned Alex Kemp and his crew to officiate for the upcoming matchup between the New Orleans Saints and the Cleveland Browns.

Kemp is one of the most penalty-happy referees in the NFL, behind only Ron Torbert, Clete Blakeman and Adrian Hill. Over nine games so far this season, Kemp has thrown 162 total flags, 25 of which were dismissed. That’s an average of 15.22 penalty flags thrown per game, for an average of 126.89 yards.

Among those, 60 of them were on the home team, with 77 of those coming against the away team.

The last time the Browns played a game under Kemp and company was on Dec. 28, 2023, when Cleveland recorded a 30-27 victory over the visiting New York Jets. In that game, Kemp’s crew threw 12 flags on the Jets for 74 yards.

Four flags were thrown on the Browns for 26 yards.

The Saints last saw Kemp when they shut out the New England Patriots on the road with a 34-0 victory in Gillette Stadium on Oct. 8, 2023.

12 penalties were thrown on the Saints for 86 yards, with five penalties thrown on the Patriots for 30 yards.

Overall, the Saints have had decent success under Kemp with a 4-2 record when he is the referee. The Browns haven’t exactly been lucky or unlucky with a 2-2 record under Kemp in the same position.

It will be interesting to see how things shake out this time around with New Orleans and Cleveland set to kick off at Noon CT/1 p.m. ET on Sunday from the Caesars Superdome.

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Twitter can’t believe yet another missed call from Broncos-Chiefs game

The Chiefs got away with blatant penalties against the Broncos on Sunday. The NFL has to do something about the officiating.

The Kansas City Chiefs benefited from some questionable officiating in their 16-14 victory over the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

The most egregious case was a phantom illegal contact foul called against Broncos safety Brandon Jones in the second quarter. That penalty kept a Chiefs drive alive and was at least a four-point swing.

That certainly wasn’t the only questionable decision from the officiating crew.

NFL Network’s Brian Baldinger took to Twitter/X on Monday to show Kansas City’s offensive line getting away with an obvious hold.

“I don’t know, it’s getting like a little ridiculous right here,” Baldinger says as he shows Broncos defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers blatantly held by Chiefs offensive tackle Jawaan Taylor. “I’ll just leave the commentary to you. All right, they got the sack … but, I mean, I guess they’re just not gonna throw the flags.”

Fans, pundits and even former players have weighed in on the missed calls (and bad calls) from Sunday’s game.

Sayre Bedinger of Predominantly Orange summed it up well — it’s not that we believe there’s a grand conspiracy. Fans are simply tired of inconsistent officiating and Kansas City seemingly getting preferential treatment and the benefit of the doubt every week. It’s a recurring issue, and NFL fans are sick of it.

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What we know about NFL ref meeting with Taylor Swift before Broncos-Chiefs game

A referee “briefly met with Taylor Swift” before the Broncos-Chiefs game on Sunday, according to KSNT 27 Sports.

During the Kansas City Chiefs’ game against the Denver Broncos on Sunday, NFL aggregation accounts on Twitter/X started sharing a story that essentially said, “NFL referee Sarah Thomas met with Taylor Swift before the game and FaceTimed her family during the meeting.”

If true, that’s not a good look because Swift, of course, is dating Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce, and Thomas was working the Broncos-Chiefs game on Sunday. The story might have been a bit exaggerated, though.

First, note that NFL officials are commonly all lumped into the “referee” category even though there’s technically only one “referee” on the crew, the lead official. Technically, Thomas is a “down judge,” but colloquially, fans dub them all referees.

Second, the accounts all linked back to KSNT 27 News. That’s a legitimate news station in Northeast Kansas, but they did not write a story on Swift’s exchange with Thomas. All the hoopla linked back to one tweet from Landon Reinhardt, who works for the station.

“Sarah Thomas, the down judge (ref) for today’s Chiefs/Broncos game, briefly met with Taylor Swift before the game,” Reinhardt tweeted on Sunday. “She was on FaceTime with family and I heard her say, ‘Did you get that screenshot?'”

While perhaps not the best look (especially when the Chiefs continue to get questionable calls), that exchange seems pretty innocent. It could have been as simple as Thomas being on the phone with her family in the stadium before the game and Swift happening to walk by. It’s not unusual to say hello to a celebrity, even when you’re an NFL official.

The ordeal seems to be overblown, but Broncos Wire has asked the NFL if they have a comment on the meeting. We are waiting for a response.

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Even Pat Surtain’s dad (a former Chief) thinks the refs favor KC

Even Pat Surtain’s dad (a former Chief) was not happy with questionable officiating during Sunday’s game in Kansas City.

NFL fans have been suspicious in recent seasons that officials favor quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs with their calls. Sunday’s 16-14 win over the Denver Broncos certainly added fuel to the fire.

The Chiefs benefited from several questionable calls against the Broncos in Week 10, including a safety Brandon Jones being penalized for illegal contact, which negated a Nik Bonitto sack on third down.

After Kansas City was gifted a first down, they went on to score a touchdown, so that penalty was arguably a four-point swing. Fans and pundits quickly lashed out against the call on Twitter/X.

Among those who objected to the call was the father of Denver cornerback Pat Surtain II — Patrick Surtain Sr. tweeted: “These refs…smh.”

The elder Surtain played cornerback in the NFL from 1998-2008, spending his final four years in the NFL with the Chiefs. He obviously has more loyalty to his son than to his former team.

The Broncos had plenty of chances to win Sunday’s game, and they acknowledged that after the loss. Fans will cope with conspiracy theories, but Denver can’t blame the officials. The Broncos need to play better going forward, even if it feels like the officiating is one-sided.

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