Football is a wonderful, thrilling, inspiring game that can lift us to new heights in our lives.
But football is also a weird, inexplicable, at times downright stupid game that may force you to perform Keith Moon-level furniture destruction in your own living room.
So, as much as we at Touchdown Wire endeavor to write about what makes the game great, there are also times when it’s important to point out the dumb plays, boneheaded decisions, and officiating errors that make football all too human.
Folks, it’s time for the Worst of the Week for Week 14 of the 2023 NFL season. And we’re not covering officiating errors as we generally do, because we have a more important issue to discuss — the NFL still doesn’t care one bit about head trauma.
The Steelers' fourth-and-2 play call near the two-minute warning.
With 2:01 left in their Thursday night matchup with the New England Patriots, the Pittsburgh Steelers had fourth-and-2 from their own 49-yard line. Down 21-18, they needed to get within field goal range (at worst) to tie the game.
Instead of a high-percentage play, the call was for a backside fade throw from quarterback Mitchell Trubisky to receiver Diontae Johnson. The Steelers had no quick options to the sideline — receiver Allen Robinson and tight end Pat Freiermuth were running stuff over the middle — and given that the two-minute warning was coming up, maybe they get a pass for that one. But you need an easy completion and conversion for your inconsistent quarterback here, not one of the toughest throws in any quarterback’s arsenal. Johnson did get far enough away from cornerback Jonathan Jones to bring the ball in, but again, this is a VERY tough throw to make, and Trubisky couldn’t do it.
Pittsburgh does NOTHING but run the ball on 1st & 10 and 2nd & long
then they get to use the 2:00 warning as a free timeout with 3rd & 2 or 4th & 2 and don't try to run the ball once
play calling never makes any sense out of the Steelers
it's horrible
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) December 8, 2023
“It was,” head coach Mike Tomlin said after the game, when asked if Johnson was the primary read on that play. “We were down there. We play to win. We wanted to be aggressive. We just didn’t get it done.”
Trubisky told a slightly different story.
We had multiple options. The safety [Jabrill Peppers] was favoring GP [George Pickens, to the other side]. I liked the one-on-one with Diontae. I felt like I could throw a better ball.”
Well, Peppers was probably cheating to Pickens because Pickens is by far the team’s best fade and contested catch receiver, but we digress.
Defensive lineman Cameron Heyward was also asked about the decision.
“Go for it. I’m not running from it. You know, he wanted to see his playmaker make a play. Didn’t make it; so be it. As defense I look at like, man, we shouldn’t have been in that situation. You know, 18 points is plenty, and 21 is way too much.”
21 is certainly way too much when you bust on 18.
The Steelers letting T.J. Watt back on the field.
You never want to make Worst of the Week twice in the same week, but here we are with the Steelers. Edge-rusher T.J. Watt suffered more than one big hit against the Patriots, and it appears that heaven and earth was moved to endure that Watt returned to play. This despite after a trip to the medical tent, Watt appeared to have sensitivity to light (one symptom of head trauma), and the team had to add a black visor to his face mask.
He got hit in the head twice. He got a tinted visor. He got smelling salts. And he was allowed to finish the game. These are missed opportunities to call a symptom a symptom on Thursday, not Friday. No blame or shame, we just have to learn and do better. https://t.co/36Gy4nI0U9 pic.twitter.com/khxp4Hr8PE
— DocFlynn (@DocFlynnNFL) December 9, 2023
The Steelers have now announced that Watt is in concussion protocol, but the question must be asked — if that preventative measure was taken in the game, why was Watt allowed to return to play at all? As we saw last season, the Miami Dolphins, and the NFL’s “independent neurologists” missed multiple instances of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa experiencing head trauma in games.
In 2016, The NFL and NFLPA announced a new policy to enforce the concussion protocol. The new policy was said to implement a “strict and fair” process that investigates incidents regarding concussion protocol and what discipline will be enacted.
- A first violation by a team will require team employees or medical team employees to attend a remedial education and/or the team will pay a maximum fine of $150,000.
- A second violation will result in a minimum fine of $100,000 against the team.
- If it is agreed that a violation involved aggravating circumstances, the team will be subject to a fine of no less than $50,000.
- If the NFL Commissioner determines that a medical team failed to follow the protocol in order to win a game, the Commissioner can require the team to forfeit draft picks and impose fines that can exceed the amounts above.
The NFL and NFLPA determined that the Dolphins followed concussion protocol before, saying in a statement that “The outcome in this case was not what was intended when the protocol was drafted.”
Obviously not. What, if anything, will become of the Watt situation remains to be seen, but this would appear to be a bit of a red flag.
The Colts letting Gardner Minshew stay on the field.
If you think that the Watt incident had the league’s spotters watching this any more closely, we hereby present this play that happened with 6:19 left in the first half between the Indianapolis Colts and the Cincinnati Bengals. Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew scrambled to his right, and he was scrambled near the sideline.
Looks like the “independent neurologist” fell asleep again pic.twitter.com/5OUh3ukIG8
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) December 10, 2023
Minshew got up as if he’d just been shot in a Western, but nobody did anything about it. The Colts called six straight handoffs to running back Zack Moss after that (which is suspicious in and of itself), and then, Minshew threw a two-yard touchdown pass to tight end Mo Alie-Cox.
4th down? That ain’t no problem for Gardner Minshew and Mo Alie-Cox!
Odds via @BetMGM
Anytime TD (+800)✅💰#Colts #ForTheShoe
— BetFTW (@Bet_ForTheWin) December 10, 2023
That’s great for Minshew, but what about that head injury? I guess he’ll just have to fend for himself on this one. Minshew played the rest of the game, so it really seems like nobody in the stadium cared about this.
Because when Colts head coach Shane Steichen was asked post-game whether Minshew was checked for a concussion, his answer was simple:
“Not that I know of.”
“I don’t know if I did stumble,” Minshew said of the play. “Maybe I did. I think that another guy might have stumbled too. But I felt good for getting hit by two dudes. It’s not ideal, but all good.”
This is NOT okay.
The Saints allowing Derek Carr to play after two concussions in three weeks.
The only thing more dangerous than letting a player return to, or stay in, a game after head trauma is letting a player return to the field after multiple concussions in a short period of time. You can ask hundreds of pro football players from the past about that. Well, this is what happened to New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr, who started his team’s Sunday game against the Carolina Panthers despite two concussions in his last three weeks.
“I have felt better, but I’m doing great, that’s for sure,” Carr told pool reporter Luke Johnson of the New Orleans Times-Picayune. This after Carr was taken out of concussion protocol on Friday.
“I don’t really have any concerns,” Carr said. “I did some extra tests and things like that this week, just checking on things. Our doctors and the non-affiliated doctor said everything was perfect, they showed me the results in comparison to things.
“I do not have any worries on that stuff. It didn’t feel like the two were even related to one another. So, for me, that’s just sometimes the price of doing business and playing football. So no concern on that part, long term or short term. Fully confident that I can be alright playing with that part of it.”
Problem No. 1 with these kinds of situations is that when you start to stack concussions, the dangers are more severe. Problem No. 2 is that players who are coming off multiple concussions maybe shouldn’t be trusted to determine their own starting status.
The fact that Derek Carr is not worried about starting today despite 2 #concussions in his last 3 games is a failure of education.
The closer concussions are together, the greater the risk of catastrophic outcomes.
Can't we give the man a week off? https://t.co/swxixmG0a4
— Chris Nowinski, Ph.D. (@ChrisNowinski1) December 10, 2023
So, the Saints put Carr back in against the Panthers so that he could go 18 of 26 for 119 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 88.5. The Saints beat the Panthers 28-6 because they’re the Panthers, but do we really think that Jameis Winston wouldn’t have put up an equivalent performance? I mean, Carr was also playing with a non-displaced rib cartilage fracture and an injury to his throwing shoulder, so exactly what are we trying to prove here?
Carr also made some suboptimal throws…
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) December 10, 2023
…and got into a beef with center Erik McCoy after a sack.
https://t.co/hfgrkP2C6K pic.twitter.com/6NIKVaYQ0o
— Nick Underhill (@nick_underhill) December 10, 2023
I suppose we can be thankful that the Houston Texans were smart enough to pull quarterback C.J. Stroud after Stroud’s head hit the turf hard against the New York Jets. Yes, we are to the point where we’re extending flowers to the teams that actually do what they’re supposed to do in these instances.
.@HoustonTexans QB C.J. Stroud is in the locker room while undergoing a concussion evaluation after this play
Chances to return next week here⏩https://t.co/KeKg1UxKnC pic.twitter.com/L26JTCIbUM
— Sports Injury Central (@SICscore) December 10, 2023
Jamal Adams, the sequel.
Well, Seattle Seahawks safety Jamal Adams has not had the greatest of weeks. After getting burned by Dallas Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson on a crucial touchdown, Adams responded by insulting the appearance of the wife of New York Jets reporter Connor Hughes on social media, and then doubling down when he was asked about it. This after Hughes responded to Adams’ play against Ferguson with one simple word: “Yikes.”
If any of that was supposed to inspire Adams to new heights against the San Francisco 49ers… well, it didn’t quite worked out that way. On the first play of the game, 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey took the ball for 74 yards and a near-touchdown. While Adams was far from the only Seattle defender lapsing on the play, we’re not quite sure what No. 33 was doing to help contain McCaffrey’s moves.
First play of the game pic.twitter.com/pDh7lfzAVD
— Dugar, Michael-Shawn (@MikeDugar) December 10, 2023
On the first play of the game, Christian McCaffrey ran 66 yards before being contacted, getting tackled just short of the goal line.
McCaffrey has gained a league-high +254 rushing yards over expected this season, including +69 on the 72-yard run.#SEAvsSF | #FTTB pic.twitter.com/5y69SfVwRB
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) December 10, 2023
Then, with 8:18 left in the second quarter, Adams tried to follow receiver Deebo Samuel up and over the seams, and that REALLY didn’t go well.
Deebo Samuel scores a long touchdown. Jamal Adams also featured.
VIDEO
— Joe Schad (@schadjoe) December 10, 2023
Deebo runs past Jamal Adams for the long TD. pic.twitter.com/y0hUCGY2ow
— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) December 10, 2023
The Seahawks lost 28-16, and Adams’ “Yikes” plays were a big part of that, whether he likes it or not.
To add to the burn, 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy explained after the game why and how he knew that Samuel was primed for a big play.
Brock Purdy had a feeling he and Deebo Samuel were going connect for a "big one" once he saw Jamal Adams creep into the box 😏 pic.twitter.com/F975LbhuFu
— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) December 11, 2023
To his credit, Adams took the heat this time.
Jamal Adams explains the touchdown he allowed to Deebo Samuel racing past him in #Seahawks' loss at 49ers.
"I was too short. I was sitting flat-footed…Obviously, I take that heat, for sure." https://t.co/fSXhrdVvY1 @thenewstribune
— Gregg Bell (@gbellseattle) December 11, 2023
The Buccaneers' short-handed attempt to defend Bijan Robinson.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers pulled off a narrow 29-25 win over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, but it certainly appeared that the primary battle in this game was Falcons head coach Arthur Smith’s insistence on keeping his best players out of the end zone, and Todd Bowles’ Bucs defense giving a free lane to everybody with birds on their helmets.
This was especially true on Bijan Robinson’s three-yard touchdown run with 11:10 left in the game. Perhaps the Bucs were convinced that Smith would never call a straight run for his best offensive player, perhaps preferring a three-tight end option lateral ending with three different penalties. For whatever reason, Tampa Bay had just nine defenders on the field, which made Robinson’s touchdown that much easier.
If you want proof, here are the DOTS.
https://t.co/hJDGPN5Iyd pic.twitter.com/yFMoOD1wLj
— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) December 10, 2023
Kadarius Toney's big mistake.
The Kansas City Chiefs have had a lot of issues with their receivers, and Kadarius Toney might be the primary offender in that regard. When the Chiefs took on the Bills on Sunday, Toney had the opportunity when his coaches called a play that Bills quarterback Josh Allen called “the ballsiest play I’ve ever seen.”
There was 1:25 left in the game, the Chiefs had the ball at the Buffalo 49-yard line down 20-17, and the call was indeed ballsy. Patrick Mahomes threw a deep shot to Travis Kelce, who then threw the ball to Toney, who raced in for a touchdown.
There was only one issue… Toney was offside on the play, and the touchdown was negated.
Here's a look at the Kadarius Toney offsides penalty that took away that awesome Travis Kelce pass-TDpic.twitter.com/bIafiKUGSdhttps://t.co/aIVI2Y4GJI
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) December 11, 2023
There are times when receivers will ask officials if they’re lined up offside. Whether Toney did that or not is another matter. Not that this would have guaranteed the Chiefs anything.
Terry McLaurin looks at the ref asking if he’s good – ref points back at McLaurin as of to indicate he’s good. McLaurin then gives a thumbs up to ref to acknowledge it. This “penalty” took a Brian Robinson TD off the board. Via @SNFonNBC pic.twitter.com/B86N6nsJsS
— Matthew Berry (@MatthewBerryTMR) December 19, 2022
When officiating the line of scrimmage, general philosophy is not to be overly technical and split hairs over very minor infractions (such as a receiver's hand slightly breaking the LOS). However, when an infraction is so egregious and obvious, a flag has to be thrown.
Kadarius…
— Gene Steratore (@GeneSteratore) December 11, 2023
The Chiefs lost the game, and after the fact, neither Mahomes nor Andy Reid was amused at all. Mahomes was visibly infuriated at the officials on the field.
Holy sh—!!!!! pic.twitter.com/kXgaJkaQU1
— mike freeman (@mikefreemanNFL) December 11, 2023
"To take away greatness like that … I know as fans you want to see the guys on the field decide the game."
– Patrick Mahomes on the offsides call that negated a TD pic.twitter.com/AVh2CWsjli
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) December 11, 2023
Chiefs’ HC Andy Reid was not pleased that officials did not warn him that Kadarius Toney was lined up offsides the way they have in the past. About the call, the normally mild-mannered Reid said, “It's a bit embarrassing for the National Football League for that to take place.”
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 11, 2023
Fair points perhaps, but the best way to avoid an offside penalty is to avoid lining up offside.
