The New York Giants will likely receive an apology letter or two (or three) from league offices this week after their officiating crew, led by Ron Torbert, cost Big Blue with multiple bad calls or non-calls in Week 16.
At one point during the 33-25 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, head coach Brian Daboll exploded on the referees in a now-viral moment.
Officials penalized rookie center John Michael Schmitz for a false start on a key fourth down play even though it wasn’t actually a false start. In fact, it should have been called a defensive offsides.
Brian Daboll pissed at the false start call pic.twitter.com/Kf16KIGv0M
— Bobby Skinner (@BobbySkinner_) December 25, 2023
The refs just called this a false start on John Michael-Schmitz…
I really don't understand it anymore. pic.twitter.com/NI9UowVJn0
— Alex Wilson (@AlexWilsonESM) December 25, 2023
Even those on the FOX broadcast questioned the call, including rules expert Dean Blandino.
But that wasn’t the only miscue for the officials on the day. There were several other instances of bad calls that were very obviously skewed in the Eagles’ favor. Among them was a non-call on a clear defensive pass interference late in the game.
WOW: No pass interference called here on the #Eagles DB with the game on the line
😳😳😳
(Via @iam_johnw)
pic.twitter.com/Y3QTd9WTpC— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) December 26, 2023
There was another arguable DPI committed on the final play of the game that, again, went uncalled. The Giants were left in utter disbelief as quarterback Tyrod Taylor protested to the officials.
“I think there were some flags that could have been thrown, but that is not our place,” Taylor said after the game. “That is not fair. If it’s a call, call it. It shouldn’t be a last-play mentality. If it’s a call, and if it’s blatant, then it should be called. It should be honored like it is the first play of the game.”
Fearing that he might get himself fined, Daboll was far more subdued when discussing the officials. And by subdued, we mean he refused to answer any questions.
“I’d say, any official questions, you can ask those guys,” Daboll said.
Daboll repeated the line, “You can ask those guys” at least three times when pressed on the multiple bad calls.
The officials aren’t why the Giants lost the game but the Eagles certainly didn’t need the help. And it’s also not a new issue for the NFL, who have been dealing with poor officiating for several years.
However, the problem seems to be getting worse league-wide and not better. Monday afternoon’s game is just the latest example of referees attempting to steal the primetime spotlight and dictate the outcome of a game.
