Eagles CB James Bradberry Admits to Holding Chiefs WR JuJu Smith-Schuster on Crucial Super Bowl LVII Play

On the heels of the Eagles’ Super Bowl LVII loss on Sunday, cornerback James Bradberry addressed a critical defensive holding penalty he drew late in the game that positioned the Chiefs for a 38–35 victory.

After the devastating loss, Bradberry was asked for his thoughts on the ruling made on the play, which resulted in a game-winning Harrison Butker field goal. And, while the aftermath of the call drew much controversy both on air and online, the 29-year-old admitted to reporters that the right call was made in the moment.

“I pulled on his jersey. They called it. I was hoping they would let it ride,” Bradberry said of the play, according to Josina Anderson of CBS Sports.

Bradberry’s humble response to arguably the game’s biggest call seemingly shut the door on any lingering conversations surrounding the play in the coming days and weeks. But, as is often the case, the debates will likely continue given the timing and circumstances surrounding the play.

With the game tied at 35 apiece with less than two minutes left in the game, Bradberry appeared to thwart a pass to Chiefs receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster after the ball sailed over the wideout’s head on third-and-8. The officials would review the play and determine Bradberry grabbed Smith-Schuster just after the snap, reversing a would-be incompletion to a first down ahead of a 27-yard Butker field goal with eight seconds left in the contest.

When asked for his perspective after the game, Smith-Schuster, like Bradberry, didn’t hesitate to tell the media that he agreed with the whistle. 

“Oh yes, a hundred percent,” Smith-Schuster said when asked if he believed he was held. “My route was strike in and then strike back out. I mean, Bradberry is a good player but I feel like the call is gonna be called.”

On the other hand, Eagles coach Nick Sirianni wasn’t quite as diplomatic when asked for his reaction. 

“It’s not my job to make the call,” Sirianni said. “Those guys have to do that in split-second scenarios. And so that’s what he saw and he called it. I know it always appears to be that it’s one call that makes the game, but that’s not what it is. It’s not what it is. There’s so many plays that contribute to the end result of the game and today they were better than we were.”