Did Puka Nacua & Rams Get Screwed by Refs In Controversial Playoff Loss at Lions?
If it's an NFL weekend, it must be time for an NFL refs goofup.
They are not doing this because the games are fixed. They are not doing this because they are biased. No, the NFL referees are having a controversial impact on these multi-billion-dollar outcomes because they are part-timers who are overwhelmed and incompetent.
And the Los Angeles Rams just felt the brunt of it in as they lost to the Detroit Lions, 24-23, in a Sunday night Wild Card game.
It has always been a part of sports, dating back 100 years to baseball fans shouting (playfully?) "Kill the Ump!'' But in part because of the use of TV cameras and replay, the scrutiny is great. And the controversy is greater.
A most recent example: The refs appeared to miss a pass interference call on the Lions against the Rams on a fourth-down pass from Matthew Stafford to Puka Nacua that would've kept alive a drive ... in a game in which the sensational rookie Nacua was unstoppable.
Unstoppable - unless he is dragged down, tackled and assaulted before he's allowed to catch the ball.
On the play, watch Nacua begin working back to the ball on third-and-14. A tug of his jersey restrains him from reaching for the ball. Lions corner Cameron Sutton got away with a hold. If Nacua was unobstructed, he likely would have hauled it in. If the pass was complete or the holding was called, the Rams would have had a first down, keeping their drive in good shape in the game’s final minutes.
And Stafford would've kept throwing to the sensational rookie. Note that Nacua’s final target was the only one of the night he didn’t catch. He hauled in nine balls for 181 yards and a score, once again looking like the best player on the field. The fifth-round pick has cemented himself amongst the league’s best and a key part of Los Angeles’ future.
But now the future is next year, not next week.
Yes, the Rams benefitted from some calls. Just like the Lions did. Just like every team every week. Is that supposed to ease the pain of being victimized by poor officiating?
Did the NFL refs screw the Rams on purpose? Of course not.
Did the NFL refs screw the Rams? As has been the case with every team in every game in ways that impact outcomes? Of course.
