"Unfortunately, their inconsistent calls, many of which were questionable, to put it kindly, made sure Hussey and his crew were the third team on the field for much of the game, which I stated shouldn't happen in a game of this magnitude. "Because the division is on the line on Sunday, on top of determining the Patriots' playoff seeding, it's crucial that the officials don't get too involved with the game, which too many crews have done this year.""
"It might seem like useless information, and for the most part, it is, but with how officiating has gone this season, even for the Patriots, it has become more popular amongst fans in predicting how a game might go. By the end of the game, the Patriots were penalized seven times for a loss of 65 yards, most of which came on third-and-long plays by the Bills' offense, allowing them to continue otherwise dead or stopped drives and eventually score."
Officials are announced before every NFL game and their penalty records are publicly available, which fans use to predict game outcomes. John Hussey was assigned as referee for the Patriots-Bills Week 15 game; his crew averages 12.9 penalties per game, tied for seventh fewest among 17 crews. The crew produced several inconsistent calls and non-calls and became a prominent presence on the field. The Patriots were penalized seven times for 65 yards, many on third-and-long, allowing the Bills to extend drives and score. The officiating contributed to the Patriots' loss, though it was not the sole reason.
Read at Musket Fire
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]