Getty Barry Sanders
The Detroit Lions were doomed by a phantom hands to the face call on Monday Night Football against the Green Bay Packers. Many fans found the call questionable and one noteworthy comment came from Hall-of-Famer Barry Sanders, as he agreed with those who thought Clete Blakeman’s officiating crew made a poor call.
After the play, Sanders took to Twitter to share his frustration with the world, and as he said, he feels as if the Lions were robbed on the play. Here’s a look at what Sanders wrote in the moment:
I know that no one on the @lions can say it, so I will… that is a terrible missed call, on hands to the face and bad break for our D that is playing so hard. #replayhelpneeded
Trey Flowers was called for the penalty, and instead of a punt, the Packers were gifted a free first down. They ended up getting into the end zone a few plays later when Aaron Rodgers fired a score to the corner of the end zone to pull Green Bay within 22-20.
The play was a big one in the fourth quarter and it ended up helping the Packers cut into what was a sizable Detroit lead and flip momentum in a close game. Many folks agreed with Sanders that the call was a mistake, and even called out Blakeman’s crew for their mistakes.
Another similar play happened later on to Flowers which cost the Lions even more dearly in the end on a critical third down and Sanders was just as mad.
Safe to say even the legends didn’t like watching the league’s performance play out on the big stage in terms of the referees.
Sanders on Stafford
Recently, while helping out at Ford Field for a volunteer event, Sanders was asked about Detroit’s start and specifically, what has impressed him about the team. In terms of the answer, Stafford was brought up and the legendary running back thinks the team is in great hands with the man who’s calling the shots under center.
“I think we’re off to a great start. I think he’s one of those guys from my perspective is very well respected around the league. I think it’s kind of similar to when I played. You know when you play him, you know you’re in for a dogfight. That the Lions aren’t the roll over team anymore,” Sanders told WXYZ’s Brad Galli recently.
In the same interview, Sanders went on to call Stafford elite. Certainly big words for the quarterback who leads the Lions into battle every week. It was a shame not to see him get a better outcome in Green Bay.
Frustration From Skip Bayless
Think Sanders was the only one who was frustrated with the refs? Think again. Even FOX Sports analyst Skip Bayless had a ton to say, calling the officiating consistently bad that is trotted out by the league.
NFL officiating is so consistently bad. Jerry Jones used to argue with me that human error among refs is good for the game because it creates day-after controversy and conversation and increases interest. Maybe so. But I’d rather talk about great plays than bad calls.
As Bayless hints, big-time changes are needed indeed, so that folks don’t have to continue to talk about the referee mistakes and can instead focus on the big plays that are made by some of the best athletes on the planet.
No matter whether you’re a revered NFL Hall of Famer or an analyst some would consider obnoxious, it’s obvious that the Lions had a game stolen from them and folks are frustrated.
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