What was the worst call to go against each of the NFL’s 32 teams?
No matter who you talk to, football fans will tell you that the referees are against their favorite team. Raiders’ fans will tell you the league has a vendetta against their squad, which has seen plenty of bad calls go against them. While we could spend a few hours talking about the Raiders’ misfortune, let’s take a look at the worst call the officials have made against each of the NFL’s 32 teams.
Arizona Cardinals: Letting the 1948 championship game be played as scheduled
We’re hopping in the way back machine to the Cardinals’ Chicago days when they were playing the Philadelphia Eagles for the NFL championship in 1948. The weather was dreadful as there was a massive blizzard in Philadelphia but the game was played anyway since it was going to be the first NFL championship game to be televised. The poor conditions played a significant role in the Cardinals’ 7-0 loss.
Atlanta Falcons: Navorro Bowman gets away with pass interference in the 2012 NFC Championship Game
The 2012 NFC title game wasn’t going well for the Falcons, who blew an early lead to fall behind the San Francisco 49ers 28-24 late in the fourth quarter. Atlanta had a chance to score the go-ahead touchdown on fourth and goal with just over a minute left but Matt Ryan’s pass towards Roddy White was broken up by Bowman. Replays showed that Bowman was holding White prior to the pass, which should have led to a pass interference penalty and an automatic first down. The refs didn’t see it, however, ending the game and sending the 49ers to the Super Bowl.
Baltimore Ravens: The refs give the Jaguars a gift in 2015
This scenario was a bit odd, but in 2015 the Ravens were absolutely screwed against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Baltimore was up one in the final seconds with the Jaguars lining up to attempt a Hail Mary shot. Jacksonville didn’t set properly, but the refs missed it, allowing the play to proceed, where Elvis Dumervil was flagged for a facemask. The penalty gave the Jaguars a field goal for the win, but if the refs had called the illegal motion the game would have been over and Baltimore would have won.
Buffalo Bills: The Music City Miracle
This is a painful moment for Bills fans, who will still insist to this day that Frank Wycheck threw a forward lateral to Kevin Dyson. Referees disagreed, ruling that the ball traveled on a parallel path down the 25-yard line from Wycheck to Dyson, who took it the distance for a touchdown. The play was reviewed but stood after there was not enough conclusive evidence to overturn the original call, giving the Titans a win and the Bills the beginning of a lengthy playoff drought.
Carolina Panthers: Gerald McCoy draws a dubious roughing the passer call in Green Bay
The Panthers haven’t been in the NFL for long and the worst offense against them came last season. Up at Lambeau Field, the Packers faced a third and 13 at their own seven-yard line when McCoy and Bruce Irvin combined on a critical sack. Refs threw a flag on the play, calling McCoy for a very sketchy roughing the passer call that extended the drive. Carolina got revenge later in the period when McCoy stuffed Jamaal Williams shy of the end zone as the half expired.
Chicago Bears: The Instant Replay Game
Instant replay can often cause more problems than it solves and the Bears were victims of a bad replay decision in 1989. Chicago was leading 13-7 late in the contest when Don Majkowski hit Sterling Sharpe for a touchdown that one official ruled was an illegal forward pass. The play was reviewed and officials ruled that even though Majkowski was across the line of the scrimmage the ball was not, validating the touchdown and leading to a Packers’ win. The Bears won only one more game the rest of the season.
Cincinnati Bengals: Ryan Shazier crushes Gio Bernard in the 2016 playoffs
The Bengals haven’t won a playoff game since 1991 and getting poor luck from the officials hasn’t helped. One egregious example came in 2016 when the Bengals were taking on the Steelers in the Wild Card round. Shazier leveled Bernard with the crown of his helmet, a play that saw Bernard get a concussion and fumble. Officials didn’t penalize Shazier for unnecessary roughness, leading to a rule change two months after the fact to make that action illegal.
Cleveland Browns: Frank Gifford’s fumble wasn’t called in 1958
Did you know that the Browns could have had a spot in the 1958 NFL Championship Game, which has gone on to be referred to as the greatest game ever played? Cleveland was tied 10-10 with the Giants holding the ball with 2:17 to go on the Browns’ 42-line. Gifford caught a pass and took a step before he was hit and fumbled, leaving Walt Michaels with the football streaking towards the end zone to put the Browns ahead. Refs frantically blew the play dead, claiming Gifford never had possession, and Pat Summerall kicked the winning field goal. The Giants then proceeded to knock out the Browns in a winner-take-all rematch the following week, a game that wouldn’t have happened if the refs made a proper call.
Dallas Cowboys: Bennie Barnes is called for pass interference in Super Bowl XIII
The Cowboys have been hosed a few times, including Dez Bryant’s overturned catch in Green Bay during the playoffs and the fact that Deion Sanders probably interfered with Michael Irvin during the 1994 playoffs. We’re going back to Super Bowl XIII, however, when Dallas cornerback Bennie Barnes was called for pass interference after allegedly tripping Steelers’ receiver Lynn Swann midway through the fourth quarter. The 33-yard penalty put the ball on Dallas’ 23 and Franco Harris ran for a 22-yard touchdown to make it a 28-17 game, a play that significantly altered the end of the 35-31 Pittsburgh win.
Detroit Lions: The Calvin Johnson rule
The NFL’s whole catch controversy started in 2010 when Johnson caught a touchdown pass from Shaun Hill to give the Lions a 20-19 lead over the Bears with 31 seconds to go. As he was going to the ground, Johnson put the football on the ground with his hand on top of it and referees reversed the call, claiming he didn’t complete the process of the catch. Detroit went on to lose and the rule has been one of the biggest officiating disasters of the modern NFL.
Denver Broncos: Tory James gets called for pass interference in the playoffs
The Broncos experienced a lot of playoff heartbreak in the John Elway era and the referees contributed an assist in 1997. With Jacksonville in town and trailing 12-3 midway through the second quarter, James intercepted a Mark Brunell pass but was called for a highly questionable pass interference. Given new life, the Jaguars scored on the drive and rallied to beat the Broncos 30-27.
Green Bay Packers: Jerry Rice gets away with a fumble
The 1998 playoff game between the Packers and 49ers is memorable for Terrell Owens’ winning touchdown catch, but the game should have never gotten that far. Earlier in the drive, Rice caught a pass and was stripped by Packers’ safety Scott McGarrahan, leading to a fumble recovery by the Packers. Even though Rice’s knee clearly wasn’t down before the strip, officials ruled him down by contact, giving the ball back to the 49ers. The rest is history and Packers’ fans can rightfully claim they were screwed.
Houston Texans: Refs ignore a blatant pass interference on DeAndre Hopkins by the Ravens
Pass interference has been a big problem in the NFL and last year’s challenge system exacerbated the situation. Houston had a big gripe against the Ravens when Hopkins was tackled by Baltimore cornerback Marlon Humphrey well before the ball arrived. Bill O’Brien challenged and officiating head Al Riveron upheld the call in New York, leading to conspiracy theories by fans that the NFL had instructed the replay office to not overturn pass interference calls.
Indianapolis Colts: Don Chandler’s field goal that wasn’t
Blown playoff calls take on a magnified measure of importance and that was certainly the case in this Baltimore Colts playoff game. Back in 1965, the Colts were up 10-7 on the Packers in the fourth quarter of an NFL West Divisional Playoff game when Green Bay kicker Don Chandler lined up for a 22-yard field goal. The kick was wide but back judge Jim Tunney was not in the proper position to judge the attempt’s accuracy. Tunney ruled the kick good, resulting in a game that went to overtime where Chandler nailed the game-winner.
Jacksonville Jaguars: Myles Jack gets denied a key fumble return in the AFC Championship Game
No one thought the Jaguars would give the Patriots much of a fight in the 2017 AFC Championship Game, but Jacksonville held a 20-10 lead in the fourth quarter. Jack made an incredible play for the Jaguars, stripping Dion Lewis of the football and racing to the end zone for a 27-10 lead. Referees awarded Jack the fumble but not the touchdown, claiming the whistle was blown and he was down by contact. The points coming off the board were key as New England rallied to win, and this is not the first time the Patriots were beneficiaries of a bad call from the refs.
Kansas City Chiefs: Chris Jones gets called for a ridiculous roughing the passer penalty in the AFC Championship Game
Most fans outside of New England believe that the officials have given the Patriots a favorable whistle throughout their dynasty. The Chiefs experienced that in the 2018 AFC Championship Game when Jones was flagged for roughing Tom Brady on an incomplete pass. The infraction saw Jones’ hand swat Brady’s shoulder pad after the ball was released, turning a 3rd-and-10 into an automatic first down. New England went on to score on the drive and eventually won the game in overtime.
Las Vegas Raiders: The Tuck Rule
This was undoubtedly one of the worst calls in NFL history and the Patriots benefited from it. The Raiders were up three with 1:50 left in the fourth quarter of a snowy playoff game at Foxboro Stadium when Charles Woodson stripped Brady of the football, which should have led to a game-icing recovery for Oakland. Walt Coleman’s crew reviewed the call and ruled that since Brady’s arm was moving forward it was an incomplete pass, giving the ball back to New England even though Brady clearly wasn’t passing. The tuck rule gave the Patriots new life as they won in overtime and the NFL never assigned Coleman to a Raiders’ game for the rest of his career.
Los Angeles Chargers: The Holy Roller
If a play gets its own name and leads to a rule change you know the refs messed up badly. That happened to the Chargers in 1980 when they were clinging to a late lead against the Raiders in Week 2. A wild sequence in the final seconds saw Dave Casper fumble the ball forward from the eight-yard line into the end zone, where he fell on it for the game-winning touchdown. The NFL made it illegal to fumble forward on goal-to-go situations in the future, but that was too late for Chargers’ coach Tommy Prothro, who was fired a few weeks after this loss.
Los Angeles Rams: The NFL mandating the 1949 title game be played in a driving rainstorm
This is a bit similar to what happened to the Cardinals in 1948 when they were forced to play for a title in a blizzard to satisfy a TV commitment. The Rams were hosting the Eagles and the forecast, which called for a sunny Los Angeles day, was completely inaccurate as a torrential downpour hit the area. Both teams petitioned the league to move the game back a week but commissioner Bert Bell declined, citing radio commitments. The game was played on a really muddy track and the Rams ended up losing 14-0.
Miami Dolphins: The Snow Plow Game
We’ll stick with the weather theme here as the Dolphins played a snowy game in Foxboro in December of 1982 against the Patriots. With the score tied and New England driving late in the fourth quarter, Patriots’ coach Ron Meyer took advantage of a lull in the action to convince one of the snowplow drivers to take a more circuitous route across the field. The plows were supposed to clear the ten-yard markers but officials watched as one plow, driven by convicted burglar Mark Henderson, went rogue and cleared a path for the Patriots to line up for a field goal. The kick sailed through and the Dolphins lost 3-0.
Minnesota Vikings: Drew Pearson pushes off on a Hail Mary
This play went down in NFL history as the origin of the Hail Mary, the prayer Roger Staubach said when he hit Pearson for a deep touchdown as time was running out in the fourth quarter of an NFC playoff game in 1975. The issue was that Pearson pushed off of Vikings’ cornerback Nate Wright, which should have been an offensive pass interference call to wipe out the touchdown. Referees missed the call, costing the Vikings the game and a chance to get back to the Super Bowl.
New England Patriots: Ray Hamilton gets called for roughing the passer in the 1976 playoffs
The Patriots have gotten plenty of breaks from officials over the years but this is the most egregious call to go against them. Facing the Raiders in the AFC’s Divisional Round in 1976, New England was up by four with Oakland staring at a 3rd-and-18 play call with 52 seconds to go. Ken Stabler badly missed on a pass attempt but got a reprieve when refs called Hamilton for roughing the passer. Replays showed Hamilton’s hand barely grazed Stabler’s shoulder and the Raiders took full advantage of the blown call by scoring a game-winning touchdown.
New Orleans Saints: The no-call pass interference in the 2018 NFC Championship Game
This is a clear top-five worst call in the history of the NFL. The fact that the referees missed Rams’ cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman drill Saints’ receiver Tommylee Lewis well before the ball arrived is still mind-boggling to this day. The missed call changed the outcome of the game and resulted in the wrong team going to the Super Bowl in the eyes of everyone other than diehard Rams’ fans.
New York Giants: The Trey Junkin situation
Let’s go to the 2002 Wild Card playoffs where the Giants were lining up for a go-ahead field goal against the San Francisco 49ers in the final seconds. The snap was bad from Junkin, forcing punter Matt Allen to attempt a desperation heave down the field. Guard Rich Seubert got open but was taken down by Chike Okeafor, a clear pass interference penalty. The refs somehow missed the takedown and flagged the Giants for an ineligible man downfield even though Seubert was an eligible receiver on the play. The NFL admitted its mistake a few days after the game, which was of little solace to the Giants or their fans.
New York Jets: Austin Sefarian-Jenkins has a touchdown taken away
The obvious place most Jets’ fans will point to is the Mud Bowl in the 1982 AFC Championship Game, but we’ll assign the blame for that one to Don Shula. The worst call refs made against the Jets came in 2017 when Austin Sefarian-Jenkins scored a touchdown to bring the Jets within three in the fourth quarter. The ball was moving slightly while Sefarian-Jenkins was in mid-air, but referee Tony Corrente reversed the touchdown, claiming the ball was fumbled out of the end zone and went over to the Patriots as a touchback. The Jets were livid as New England went on to win the game thanks to this call, which Jets’ receiver Jermaine Kearse called “BS” after the game. It was also lampooned on Season 10 of Curb Your Enthusiasm.
Philadelphia Eagles: Howard Carmichael has a touchdown wiped off the board in the Super Bowl
One call can change the momentum of a game in a big way, which the Eagles learned the hard way in Super Bowl XV. Trailing 7-0 in the first quarter, Ron Jaworski hit Rodney Parker for a 40-yard touchdown, but the score was wiped out when Carmichael was called for illegal motion. Replays showed the call was ticky-tack at best as the Eagles were forced to punt on the drive. Oakland ended the quarter with a touchdown to go up 14-0, completely changing the dynamic of the rest of the game.
Pittsburgh Steelers: The refs mishear Jerome Bettis’ call on the Thanksgiving Day coin toss
It’s awfully hard to mess up a coin toss, but that’s what the refs did in the 1998 Thanksgiving Day showdown between the Steelers and Lions. With the game headed to overtime, Bettis called tails, but referee Phil Luckett heard heads and announced the call as such. Detroit won the toss and kicked the winning field goal on their first drive to win the game, leaving football fans across America extremely confused at what they had just witnessed.
San Francisco 49ers: Ronnie Lott gets called for holding in the 1983 NFC Championship Game
The 49ers were bidding for a trip to the Super Bowl in 1983 and made a furious comeback in the fourth quarter, scoring 21 unanswered points to tie the game. Washington got the aid of the refs at a key juncture in the fourth quarter when Lott was called for holding on a 3rd-and-5 from the San Francisco 13. Lott’s infraction was nowhere near the play and it enabled the Redskins to run out more clock before Mark Moseley kicked the go-ahead field goal with 40 seconds to go.
Seattle Seahawks: Super Bowl XL
It’s too hard to signal out one bad call in Super Bowl XL but it is clear as day that the Seahawks were routinely screwed by the officials throughout the game. Points were taken off the board and drives stalled thanks to a series of questionable penalties that made it much easier for the Steelers to win the contest. There is no question that this was the worst display of officiating in a championship game in the history of the NFL.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Bert Emmanuel rule
The 1999 NFC Championship Game was a surprisingly low-scoring affair as the Buccaneers held The Greatest Show on Turf to just 11 points. With St. Louis leading 11-7 late in the fourth quarter, Emmanuel made a crucial 12-yard reception to bring the Buccaneers down to the Rams’ 23. The play was overturned on replay when referee Bill Carollo ruled that the tip of the football touched the ground, therefore rendering the pass incomplete. Emmanuel never lost control of the football but the Buccaneers lost the game, making him the initial case of the NFL’s inconsistent rules about catches.
Tennessee Titans: Mike Renfro’s touchdown is wiped off the board
We’re going back to the days of the Houston Oilers as they faced off with the Steelers in 1980 with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. Trailing 17-10 late in the third quarter, Renfro caught what appeared to be a tying touchdown pass in the far corner of the end zone. Referees were too far from the play to tell if Renfro had maintained control of the ball or gotten both feet inbounds so the pass was ruled incomplete. The Oilers kicked a field goal but the Steelers would go on to score 10 unanswered points to easily win.
Washington Redskins: Kirk Cousins gets called for intentional grounding late in a 2017 loss to the Saints
The Redskins have been one of the most fortunate teams in football in terms of officiating but they did get hosed in 2017. Tied at 31 with the Saints late in the fourth quarter, Cousins was trying to drive the Redskins down the field for a game-winning field goal when he threw the ball out of bounds to stop the clock when no one was open. Referees flagged Cousins for intentional grounding, resulting in a loss of down and short-circuiting the potential game-winning drive. The Saints won the game and the NFL admitted after the game that grounding should not have been called, costing the Redskins a chance at a much-needed win.