NFL should be ashamed for flagging Vernon Davis
By Greg Patuto
Vernon Davis was fined after scoring a touchdown for excessive celebration during the Redskins victory over the Eagles. VP of officiating Dean Blandino explains why.
The “No-Fun League” strikes again. Redskins tight end Vernon Davis was fined for excessive celebration after scoring a touchdown against the Eagles. Davis took the ball and shot it over the goal post like an NBA player shooting a jump shot. This cost the Redskins 15 yards on the kickoff and Eagles kick returner Wendell Smallwood took it to the house for six.
NFL VP of officiating Dean Blandino explained the penalty.
“The ruling on the field here is a touchdown, and then you’ll watch number 85, he’s going to shoot the football over the goalpost, mimicking a basketball action,” Blandino explained in an online video via the Washington Post. “That’s using the ball and the goalpost as a prop. That’s a violation of the rule. You can’t dunk the ball over the goalpost, shoot the ball, finger roll, all of that is illegal — using the football and the goalpost as a prop. Fifteen-yard penalty, it’s enforced on the kickoff, so Washington kicked off from their own 20-yard line.”
This rule is extremely flawed because of the fact that spiking the football is allowed and that is using the ball as a prop. And it is okay for players to dance for an extended amount which is worse then what Davis did. Players can give the ball to someone in the crowd or even leap into the crowd without being penalized too. Unnecessary penalties can cost a team a game and it needs to stop.
“I mean, who knows man, maybe … if I slap somebody’s hand on a good play, maybe they’re gonna call us for that. Who knows. I guess suiting up, just coming out on the football field’s probably an offense. When is enough enough, you know? Fans want to see excitement. They come for this,” Redskins CB Josh Norman said. “I mean, shoot, that’s what we are, we’re entertainers. Whether you like it or not, that’s what we are man. We want to have fun with you guys, we want to have fun with the game.”
Next: Eagles at Redskins: Highlights, score, recap
Quite frankly, Blandino and the NFL should be ashamed of themselves. The league has turned the great game of football into a game that has rules that no one understands and rules against players having fun. Excessive celebration policing is overbearing, no one knows what is a catch and what isn’t and as a defensive player, you are not allowed to touch a wide receiver because the league wants to see more scoring.
It is hard to blame the refs because they are only doing what they are told. This is something that needs to be changed in the NFL front office and changed soon. The ratings are going down and I wouldn’t be surprised if they continued to drop after this.