CNN
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Another game in the NFL, another questionable penalty call for passer roughing by a team of referees.
Just a day after referees in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ 21-15 win over the Atlanta Falcons were slammed for penalizing Grady Jarrett’s sacking of Tom Brady, similar questions were asked after Monday Night Football and the spectacular 30-29 victory of the Kansas City Chiefs. on the Las Vegas Raiders.
Late in the first half, Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones fired Raiders quarterback Derek Carr, tackling Carr and landing on him while stripping the ball from him.
Despite looking like a clean strip-sack, head referee Carl Cheffers threw up his flag, penalizing Jones for roughing up the passer to the amazement of fans at Arrowhead Stadium and everyone watching at home.
“The quarterback is in the pocket and he’s in passing posture,” Cheffers said. Explain in the post-match pool report. “He gets full protection from all aspects of what we give the quarterback in passing posture. So when he was tackled, my decision was that the defender landed on him with full body weight. The quarterback is protected against full body weight tackles. My decision was to brutalize the passer for this reason.
When asked if the ball coming off Carr’s hands changed the penalty, Cheffers said“No, because he still has temporary protection until he can defend himself.
“So with him being in a passing posture and actually trying to pass, he’s going to get full protection until the point where he can actually protect himself. The fact that the ball went out and then was picked up by the defense is irrelevant when it comes to the protection the quarterback enjoys.
Jones said after the game that he thought those penalties should be subject to review.
“It happened so fast,” Jones said. “You know, it kinda looked like that at first, but when you watch the video and slow it down, you see that I kind of prepared myself.
“And the ref may have just seen a 300 pound fat man land on him [Carr] and I understand. I’m not saying the ref is wrong, but I’m just saying those situations can affect the game tremendously, especially, in the playoffs, a critical situation like that, a game-changing game, it can affect everything the game. Excuse my language, but we just have to take the initiative as a league and see what we can do better.”
The penalty allowed the Raiders to continue their drive, ending with a Daniel Carlsen field goal as they extended their lead to 20-7 before halftime.
The night didn’t end well for Las Vegas, however, as they lost a lead that swelled to 17 against their division rivals as they suffered their fourth loss of the season.
After what was a frustrating night for the Raiders, star receiver Davante Adams shoved a cameraman as he was leaving the field, for which he later apologized.
After the game, Adams – who joined the Raiders in the offseason after being traded from the Packers – addressed the incident when speaking to the media.
“Before I say anything, I want to apologize to the guy who ran off the field and he ran and jumped in front of me,” Adams said.
“I go off the field and I ran into him and pushed him. I think he ended up on the ground so I want to say sorry to him because it was just frustration mixed with the fact that he was running in front of me and I shouldn’t have reacted that way and it’s is how I originally answered. I want to apologize to him for that.
Adams himself had another great night on the field, finishing with 124 receiving yards, two touchdowns and multiple pass interference calls against Kansas City as he tormented defensive backs.
But, despite a 17-0 second quarter lead against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, no lead is certain.
Mahomes threw for four touchdowns — all against tight end Travis Kelce — as Kansas City produced a remarkable return and showed off their potential Super Bowl credentials.
Kelce finished with an extraordinary stat line, with seven catches, 25 receiving yards and 24 points with all four touchdowns – a career high for touchdowns for the 33-year-old.
“I just worked my tail off for these guys and ran tonight,” Kelce told ESPN’s Lisa Salters after the game. “That’s all I did for [Chiefs] Kingdom. They showed up, went out on a Monday night knowing everyone has work tomorrow and they were here loud and proud.
