If anyone still thinks the Miami Dolphins are tanking this season, don’t say it to head coach Brian Flores’ face. The first-year head coach erupted at the referees after the NFL called defensive pass interference following a replay to set up the New York Jets’ game-winning field goal.
Miami held a 21-19 lead with New York’s offense driving down the field. Jets quarterback Sam Darnold threw an incompletion on third-and-16, which would have set up a long fourth down from Miami’s 46-yard line with under a minute left.
Instead, the NFL automatically reviewed the play and determined Dolphins’ cornerback Nik Needham committed pass interference. Flores lost it over the decision to review the play and. As it became clear that a penalty would be called, his emotions and frustration boiled over.
The NFL’s decision allowed the Jets to move to Miami’s 38-yard line and have an automatic first down. New York drilled the game-winning field goal as time expired and Flores made sure the league’s refs heard his outrage with the call.
It’s hard to blame Flores for being this upset. The NFL’s replay process has been embarrassingly inconsistent, almost seemingly changing in each game.
The pass interference review process was meant to help avoid the type of embarrassing finish we saw in the NFC Championship Game. Instead, the rule and system is even worse than the original missed call.