5 times the Raiders got absolutely hosed by the officials
By Brad Weiss
5 times the Raiders got absolutely hosed by the officials
The “Index Card” Game
In Week 15 of the 2017 NFL season, the Raiders were sitting at 6-7, and had a legitimate shot at the playoffs, which would be their second appearance in as many years. In a Sunday Night Football matchup against the Dallas Cowboys inside the Coliseum, the Raiders would be absolutely hosed by a call from referee Gene Steratore, who smirked as he crushed the hopes of Raider Nation.
On a fourth-and-1 with under five minutes left in the game, and the Raiders tied with the Cowboys at 17, quarterback Dak Prescott appeared to be stuff short of the first down. Had he not gotten the first, the Raiders would have had the ball at the Cowboys’ 39-yard line, with a real opportunity to score.
Instead, Steratore pulled out an index card, a folded index card I might add, and placed it between the ball and the first down marker. The space between should have been enough to be a turnover on downs, but Steratore smirked as he gave the first down signal for the Cowboys, and the rest is history.
The loss eliminated the Raiders from contention in the AFC West, and killed any chance they had of making it to the playoffs for only the third time since 2003. When it comes to the index card, and the Carr fumble at the pylon, this was definitely one of the more disturbing, and controversial losses in recent memory.