The Pittsburgh Steelers scored a massive 37-15 victory over the New York Jets on Sunday, but the officials gave the Jets an extra two points they didn’t deserve. That’s what the NFL admitted to Mike Tomlin, according to the Steelers head coach.
After a Jets touchdown in the second quarter on Sunday, Steelers star safety Minkah Fitzpatrick was flagged for leverage after he jumped over the offensive line and blocked the extra-point attempt. The flag set up a two-point conversion, which was successful after Aaron Rodgers hit Garrett Wilson in the end zone.
Tomlin says the league told him what he already knew, that it shouldn’t have penalized Fitzpatrick’s play.
“I did talk to New York and they did tell me Minkah’s block was legal — which I knew in-stadium,” Tomlin said, via Pro Football Talk. “But that’s life. None of us are perfect, man. There’s going to be mistakes made in-game. There are strategic mistakes made by guys like me. There’s playing mistakes made by players. And there’s officiating mistakes.
“The bottom line is, if you’re capable and you’re on your job for 60 minutes, mistakes by others often doesn’t define the outcome of games.”
This is actually the second time this season the league has falsely flagged Fitzpatrick. In the third quarter of the Week 4 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, Fitzpatrick was flagged for unnecessary roughness after making contact with wide receiver Adonai Mitchell. The NFL admitted it got that one wrong, too.
Thankfully, this latest wrong call did not affect the outcome of the game. Still, Tomlin called that missed call “a shame.”
“… That was a significant play by ‘Mink’ and it did create a two-point scenario for them that kind of could’ve changed the texture of how that game was unfolding,” Tomlin said. “But that’s life, man. You’ve got to smile in the face of it and I expect our group to do so.”
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