Getty A former NFL official confirmed that Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen was interfered with on the team's Hail Mary attempt on Sunday.
Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen was livid after the final play of the team’s 14-7 loss to the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
An aside during the game broadcast, Thielen contended he was interfered with on the Vikings’ attempt at a hail mary.
After the game, an NFL rules analyst and former official weighed in on the play and affirmed Thielen’s frustrations.
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‘This is Defensive Pass Interference’
NBC rules analyst Terry McAulay, an NFL official for 20 years, shared a video replay of Kirk Cousins’ final throw in the end zone on Sunday and declared that Thielen was interfered with by Browns cornerback Greedy Williams.
“Similar action by the defender here to the last play in (Kansas City) last week. Not playing the ball and contact that significantly hinders the receiver. This is defensive pass interference,” McAulay declared via Twitter.
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Thielen was in the range of attempting to make a play on the ball that could have forced overtime. The commonly held belief that the NFL doesn’t call pass interference on Hail Mary throws where players tend to scrum in the end zone generally holds up.
However, the Vikings were called for pass interference against the Tampa Bay Buccanneers last season, leaving fans vexed by the league’s decision-making.
But in the end, there are several plays the Vikings wish they could have gotten back as the play went largely unaddressed in Sunday’s postgame press conference.
Vikings Offensive Line Struggles
After an impressive three-game stretch to start the season, the Vikings offense came back down to earth and failed to score in the second half.
Kirk Cousins was under duress often, facing pressure on nearly 40 percent of his dropbacks. After scoring on the game’s opening drive, the Vikings sustained drives of four or more plays on just 4 of 11 attempts the rest of the game.
“They had a good pass rush. It was understood going into the game, and they did a good job throughout the game,” Cousins said. “They also did a good job on coverage. I think, for sure, one of the sacks was a coverage sack. They did a good job.”
Vikings Revamped Defensive Line Surrenders Season-High
What was anticipated to be the Vikings’ greatest strength on defense was their biggest weakness against the Browns.
The defensive line, entirely made of new players from its 2020 unit, surrendered a season-high 184 rushing yards and allowed the Browns to dominate possession 35:32 to 24:28.
Mike Zimmer wasn’t discouraged by ceding so much yardage to the league’s most productive run offense. The Vikings coach has maintained optimism despite a 1-3 start to the season.
I’m telling you now, they know how to run the football and those two backs run hard,” Zimmer said of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. “I’m not discouraged one bit of the lack of stopping the run.”
Everson Griffen, contrarily, was not content with how his defensive linemates performed.
“We’ve got to learn from the tape. They had 184 yards rushing and we have to get better in the run game,” Griffen said, per Pioneer Press reporter Chris Tomasson.
The Vikings defense has allowed the eighth-most rushing yards per game (132.8) this season.