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 13 of the 2023 NFL season.
Clete Blakeman's flag festival in Cowboys-Seahawks.
Some referees just seem to like face time. The legendary Ed Hochuli was very much like that, and Clete Blakeman may have inherited the title. Coming into Thursday night’s game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Dallas Cowhoys, Blakeman and his crew had called just 110 penalties on the season, third-lowest in the NFL. But in this nationally televised event, Blakeman clearly wanted to make up for lost opportunities. Not only had Blakeman and his crew called 17 penalties through the end of the third quarter, but these more had been waved off after flags were thrown, and Blakeman got his mug on TV yet again.
Several of these calls were highly suspect, and even Amazon’s Thursday night crew of Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit mentioned that things were getting out of hand.
A flag was thrown here for a face mask but then the refs picked it up… #SEAvsDAL pic.twitter.com/uyetB5Oedm
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) December 1, 2023
How is this pass interference??? #SEAvsDAL pic.twitter.com/TtVnJZXopV
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) December 1, 2023
Crazy this is called a hold even though Lamb is pushing off. #SEAvsDAL pic.twitter.com/Tm2Adkdyxs
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) December 1, 2023
Flop or is this worthy of a penalty? #SEAvsDAL pic.twitter.com/u40cSIHDws
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) December 1, 2023
Given the NFL’s spotty ideas regarding “accountability” for its officials, we wouldn’t be surprised if Blakeman got to call Super Bowl LVIII.
Jamal Adams in general.
Seahawks safety Jamal Adams can be a dynamic player if he’s used as a forward-motion guy only, because his coverage skills are… well… iffy. Seattle might regret trading two first-round picks and giving a four-year, $70 million contract with $38 million guaranteed to a 220-pound boxbacker, but that’s a separate issue. In any event, Adams had his worst game of the season against the aforementioned Cowboys, allowing four catches on five targets for 48 yards, 10 yards after the catch, a touchdown, and an opponent passer rating of 146.3.
The touchdown Adams allowed to tight end Jake Ferguson with 4:37 left in a game the Cowboys won 41-35 started things off.
Adams got greased on the crosser, and Ferguson boxed him out, and that was that.
Connor Hughes, a reporter for SNYTV, posted a Tweet with the play in question, and a one-word review: “Yikes.”
Adams’ response was to post a picture of Hughes and his wife, obviously belittling Hughes’ wife.
Jamal Adams goes after Connor Hughes’ wife because Connor wrote “yikes” on the play Adams gave up a TD…
Just an awful look by the “Prez” pic.twitter.com/Tn0I1XN4iN
— uSTADIUM (@uSTADIUM) December 1, 2023
Perhaps if Adams put as much effort into coverage as he did in this specific regard, there wouldn’t be an issue.
Ron Torbert's flag festival in Falcons-Jets.
Perhaps referee Ron Torbert was inspired by Clete Blakeman’s aforementioned need for face time. Perhaps Torbert was bored by his assignment — a game between the Atlanta Falcons and the New York Jets. We would understand the second motivation. But this stretch of penalties in that game was… a bit extreme.
Jets-Falcons just featured 6 penalties in 8 plays.
TORBERT! pic.twitter.com/OnfBoIpU5A
— Nate Tice (@Nate_Tice) December 3, 2023
We’re not going to make you sit through every one of Torbert’s calls, but let’s just say that they were highly suspect.
Jets called for an illegal block here… #ATLvsNYJ pic.twitter.com/5SsmG0wlHd
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) December 3, 2023
#Jets player DJ Reed gets called for a personal foul here…. #ATLvsNYJ pic.twitter.com/piGlmohBhW
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) December 3, 2023
DJ Reed gets called for illegal contact here and it takes away an interception… #ATLvsNYJ pic.twitter.com/SISGn0CGMu
— Rate the Refs App (@Rate_the_Refs) December 3, 2023
Perhaps the NFL should start penalizing officials if they call more than a certain number of penalties, because this is getting utterly out of hand. The game ain’t about you, stripes…
Ron Rivera's time in the nation's capital.
The Washington Commanders fired defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio last week after a debacle of a Thanksgiving loss to the Dallas Cowboys in which head coach Ron Rivera’s team in which Washington allowed 376 total yards and five touchdowns in a 45-10 disaster.
On Sunday, against the Miami Dolphins, and with Rivera taking control of the defense, the Commanders allowed 405 total yards and five touchdowns in a 45-15 disaster.
The more things change, the more they stay the same, Del Rio’s defense was undone with too much man coverage that gave his defenders too little help against potentially explosive plays, and this version of Washington’s defense looked no different.
when you fire jack del rio and keep jack del rio's defense in https://t.co/W74OWfnatm
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) December 3, 2023
Moreover, it would appear that Rivera has lost traction with the idea of situational football.
Ron Rivera, down 24 at the half, said the Commanders needed to run the football more. Amazing. (H/T @ZK_FFB). pic.twitter.com/cHL79gW0zH
— Grant Paulsen (@granthpaulsen) December 3, 2023
It’s been a problem all season, and it’s highly doubtful that the Commanders — who are still trying to escape the stink of the Den Snyder era with new ownership — will retain Rivera in 2024. As the team is now effectively out of playoff hope with a 4-9 record, the time may be now to move on.
When you suggest firing a coach, the first and most reasonable question is, who do you replace him with? In this case, there’s first-year offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, who was shut out over and over for head coaching opportunities when he was the Kansas City Chiefs’ OC. Giving Bieniemy an opportunity to finish this season out would answer some questions about his NFL head coaching viability that would never happen with his former team.
At this point, any effort to maintain Rivera’s tenure with the team seems like an insult to all involved.
Shawn Smith's call to rob Houston's Desmond King of a touchdown.
As bad as NFL officiating has been this season — and it’s bad enough that Roger Goodell had better do something about it — there’s a long list of entrants for the worst call of the 2023 campaign. That said, the forward progress call that robbed Houston Texans cornerback Desmond King of a fumble return touchdowns in Houston’s Sunday game against the Denver Broncos might take the booby prize.
With 7:24 left in the third quarter, Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson threw a short pass to running back Samaje Perine, and it certainly looked as if King stripped the ball and returned it for a touchdown.
Not so fast, as referee Shawn Smith’s crew determined that Perine’s forward progress had been stopped, and therefore, it was not a fumble. You’d have a tough time finding any evidence of that on the field. CBS rules analyst and former NFL referee Gene Steratore agreed. As Steratore is generally inclined to give his ex-comrades the benefit of the doubt, this was a definitive statement.
In #DENvsHOU, the ball did not come loose immediately upon impact, so the ruling of forward progress is not reviewable.
IMO, the running back is attempting to shed the defender and is not being driven backwards beyond his control prior to losing the ball. If that is the case,… pic.twitter.com/Hq0PqxKGwY
— Gene Steratore (@GeneSteratore) December 3, 2023
It might be nice if forward progress was reviewable in this case. It might also be nice if NFL officials would stop deflating games with their outright incompetence.
Fortunately, the Texans were not impacted in the standings by this call, because the Broncos couldn’t do anything on their final drive… and goodness knows, they had enough chances.
The Broncos' final red zone drive.
The Denver Broncos tried their level best to beat the Houston Texans and extend their surprising five-game winning streak. But as we have intimated, in the end, it did not work. The Broncos started their final drive of the day down 22-17 from their own 20-yard line with 4:32 left in the game, so it was to their credit that they got to the red zone in the first place.
But then? Things didn’t go so well. Denver’s first play inside the Texans’ 20-yard line happened at the 17 with 39 seconds left, when Russell Wilson completed a four-yard pass to Jerry Jeudy. From there, Wilson attempted four more passes, going 0-for-4 with this game-ending interception to Texans safety Jimmie Ward.
WELCOME BACK JIMMIE WARD ‼️ pic.twitter.com/Ts126dxQb8
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) December 3, 2023
“Yeah, just tried to scramble, tried to avoid the sack,” Wilson said. “Couldn’t take a sack there because the clock was going to run out, so I tried to get off of it and then I saw [tight end Lucas] Krull one on one, and just tried to put it up high for him, and they made a play. You’ve got to score a touchdown, obviously, to win the game, and it just didn’t go our way.”
“Well, look, obviously we want all four downs,” Broncos head coach and offensive shot-caller Sean Payton said after the game. “I want to see the film. But certainly we felt like we were going to have – where the ball was relative to time – we were going to have four plays into the end zone. But there’s not going to be a clean look, if that’s what you’re looking for. You’re going to have to make a play in these tight windows. We’ll see the film.”
The film won’t be any more complimentary. Neither will the fact that the Broncos went 0-fot-11 when attempting to convert third downs.
The Browns' last two offensive plays against the Rams.
Give Joe Flacco credit — the fourth quarterback to start for the Cleveland Browns this season signed to the team’s practice squad on November 19, and was elevated to the roster a few days later. With quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson out with a concussion, it was up to Flacco to make his first NFL start since Week 18 of the 2022 season for the (you’ll pardon the expression) New York Jets.
Overall, Flacco availed himself pretty well against the Los Angeles Rams, completing 23 of 44 passes for 254 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 75.4. But the way this game ended for Mr. Flacco was less than optimal.
Now, Browns left guard Joel Bitonio is a five-time Pro Bowler, a two-time All-Pro, and one of the best in the NFL at his position. Coming into this game, he had allowed one sack, one quarterback hit, and 18 quarterback hurries in 439 pass-blocking reps with a series of quarterbacks who have the same relative professional lifespan as Spinal Tap drummers. But Mr. Bitonio will find film day to be troublesome.
First, there was rookie defensive tackle Kobie Turner getting past No. 75 for a sack that took the Browns from their own 14-yard line to the one-yard line…
Rams rookie Kobie Turner comes up with the big third down sack. Quickness and hustle stand out each week with him.
The third-round pick out of Wake Forest has been one of the most underrated rookies this season. pic.twitter.com/EgBqxNmBIt
— Seven Rounds in Heaven (@7RoundsInHeaven) December 4, 2023
…and then, it was all about Aaron Donald, who put on his “Destroyer of Worlds” hat on, and took both Bitonio and Flacco nearly out of the stadium.
Joel Bitonio is a five-time All-Pro and Aaron Donald took him for a whole-ass ride pic.twitter.com/D4lLMC687i
— Christian D'Andrea (@TrainIsland) December 4, 2023
And thus. Mr. Flacco’s dream day was over, and the Rams fought their way into the playoff race with a 36-19 win.
