Despite all of their issues on the offensive side of the ball in Week 12, the Tennessee Titans had a chance to even the score late in the fourth quarter; however, a penalty thwarted that chance.
Buy Titans TicketsWith the Cincinnati Bengals attempting a field goal to make it a seven-point game with just under two minutes left, Kevin Strong was flagged for an unnecessary roughness penalty after making contact with the snapper’s head.
There will no doubt be those out there who will say that was a soft call, but the fact that Strong even came close to doing such a thing is completely inexcusable.
After the game, Strong said he was surprised by the penalty but still took accountability for it.
“Yeah, I am, but I’ve just got to be better,” Strong said when asked if he was surprised by the flag. “I thought I did my job, I didn’t know I did anything wrong.”
“I was just trying to get in the “A” gap,” Strong continued. “Like I said, I wasn’t intentionally hitting him in the head. I made a mistake and I take that one and put it on me. I just have to do better for my teammates next week.”
Titans safety Kevin Byard was a bit more sure with his reaction to the penalty, saying it was legit.
“Looked like two guys hit the snapper,” Byard said. “So, I mean, I don’t know what else we should expect… they threw the flag.”
Titans head coach Mike Vrabel didn’t give his opinion one way or the other, saying he needs to take another look at it. He also rightly noted that the penalty wasn’t the reason the Titans lost this game.
And he’s right; it was simply the nail in the coffin.
