The NFL officials have come under intense scrutiny this season for missing egregious calls in crucial moments. During Sunday’s pivotal game between the Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots, officials missed an egregious penalty in the final minutes.
Trailing 24-17 with three minutes remaining on fourth down, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen kept the football and had to go around the pile to pick up the first down. Fortunately, he got it. But officials missed a glaring grab of Allen’s facemask by Patriots linebacker Jamie Collins.
While the Bills still picked up the first down at New England’s 28-yard line, the flag should have been thrown and it would have given Buffalo’s offense an additional 15 yards.
This is the time of year when teams are competing with playoff positioning on the line, which can make all the difference when the playoffs arrive. Brutal misses like this can be so costly and it remains an embarrassment that things like this continue to happen.