Ravens fans don’€™t want to hear this but overall, Walt Anderson’s crew called yet another great game.
Sure there were a ton of penalties on the Ravens, but all were warranted. If you want to place blame for the calls, look directly at the players and their lack of discipline for the 2nd straight week (especially in crucial situations).
Inevitably, there was one major call that I believe Walt Anderson’€™s crew missed, which could have cost the Ravens dearly.
Late in the 2nd quarter with the Bengals driving, Andy Dalton took a deep shot down the Ravens sideline, completing the pass to A.J. Green for a pickup of 31 yards (which seemed to be the theme of the day for the Ravens’ secondary).
Jimmy Smith was clearly frustrated by a lack of a flag for Offensive Pass Interference (OPI). His concern was 100% justifiable.
Here’s the pass and catch in real time:
Breaking down the sideline, Green and Smith both slow up when they turn for the ball. A.J. Green realizes Jimmy Smith has the inside position on the ball, and likely the advantage in a jump ball situation at that point.
In an effort to gain some separation, Green allows Smith to lean into him, while AJ Green positions his right hand in the middle of Smith’s back, while his left is on Jimmy’€™s shoulder, preventing any sudden movement, and keeping his body turned back to the ball.
By rule, this is not a penalty at all. This is nothing more than 2 players jostling for position on a ball. The penalty comes in when Green extends his arms to push off of Smith.
Jimmy’s redistribution of weight in order to counter the push from Green, and keep on his feet to continue to play the ball, gave A.J. Green that split second he needed to create separation.
This should be a very simple call on several levels.
Going to the NFL Rule Book, we jump to Rule 8, Section 5 Article 2 for Pass Interference. By rule:
Acts that are pass interference include, but are not limited to:
- a) Contact by a player who is not playing the ball that restricts the opponent’s opportunity to make a catch.
- c) Grabbing an opponent’€™s arm(s) in such a manner that restricts his ability to catch a pass, and regardless of whether the player committing such act is playing the ball.
- f) Hooking an opponent in an attempt to get to the ball in such a manner that it causes the opponent’€™s body to turn prior to the ball arriving.
- g) Initiating contact with an opponent by shoving or pushing off, thus creating a separation in an attempt to catch a pass.
In this instance, AJ Green has hands on Smith (a), grabs his shoulder in the process (c, f), pushed off of Jimmy Smith (g), and it couldn’t have been any more obvious.
What compounds the confusion of this baffling non-call is that the Head Linesman is looking directly at the contact/push being made by Green, and doesn’€™t even think twice about reaching for the flag. His view was not impeded by either player, and the arm extension is clear as day.
And yet… no flag.
It almost seems as if the only way to get a call like this one is for a player to go down and force the official to throw the flag. In this instance Jimmy could have easily gone down when Green released his extended arms, but he simply wanted to make the play on the ball as opposed to drawing a flag. Had he gone down while Green’€™s arms were extended? It’s a very easy call.
Luckily for the Ravens, the drive ended with an incomplete pass to Tyler Eifert at the 2 yard line; however, had the officials called an OPI on Green, the Bengals would have been looking at a 2nd and 14 from their own 34, which could have easily ended in a punt and better field position for Baltimore than the 2 yard line.
I expect better than this from Walt Anderson’€™s crew. Should the Ravens see them again this season, I hope calls like this won’t be missed.
