Inside The Vikings

Did Vikings Get Hosed By Officiating in Loss Against Lions?

There were a few big calls in Sunday's game that Kevin O'Connell didn't agree with.
Will Ragatz|
Did Vikings Get Hosed By Officiating in Loss Against Lions?
Did Vikings Get Hosed By Officiating in Loss Against Lions?

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Minnesota Vikings

Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell wasn't a big fan of a few calls made by Land Clark's officiating crew in Sunday's loss against the Lions.

There was an iffy roughing the passer call against Pat Jones II early in the second quarter, where Jones appeared to hit Jared Goff cleanly in the chest but was still flagged for 15 yards. That turned a 3rd and 21 into a first down in Vikings territory.

O'Connell said he'd "have to go back and take a look at that one," which is his way of politely saying he wasn't a fan.

Seven plays later, on the same drive, Goff was hit by Jordan Hicks and the ball came out of his hand as he tried to throw. Camryn Bynum scooped it up and ran 82 yards for a touchdown as the refs let the play go, but it was overturned to an incomplete pass upon replay review. That one was much closer — it did appear that Goff's hand was moving forward with just enough control of the ball — but O'Connell didn't see it that way.

"It was confirmed via the replay assist, which was unfortunate, because I would have loved to just hear that it was an official's ruling and maybe I could have thrown the flag and took it to the challenge," he said. "The views I had, I did not necessarily see it the same way. That's why I'm on our sideline and not on the field officiating the game. So clearly maybe it's — there was some views I did not see. That's momentum in its purest form when your defense can force a turnover and get seven points out of it."

There were a few late in the game, too. There was a roughness call on Ed Ingram that looked a bit soft and led to an interception on the ensuing third and very long. There was a borderline DPI no-call on Justin Jefferson in the end zone, which led to the Vikings settling for a field goal. There was a questionable illegal contact penalty on rookie cornerback Jaylin Williams that extended a Lions drive and allowed them to kill a couple more minutes.

"The illegal contact on Jaylin Williams, knowing how they were defending us a lot of the day with some hands on in the move area, (need to) go back and take a look at that as well," O'Connell said.

"We didn't go enough to win the football game and overcome adversity, injuries, anything else. There was some things there that clearly we've got to coach better from a technique standpoint or just get a little clarity on how to do that."

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI, who also covers the Twins, Timberwolves, Gophers, and other Minnesota teams. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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