Another roughing penalty angers NFL fans and social media

For the second day in a row, a rough pass penalty caused confusion in the NFL game

Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Chris Jones fired Las Vegas Raiders defender Derek Carr on third-and-eight at the Las Vegas 46-yard line with 1:13 left in the first half. Jones took the ball and walked away with it, but it also landed on Carr late in the game, even though Carr appeared to be trying to stop the fall. The officials flagged Jones for roughing the pass, allowing the Raiders to retain possession.

The fans at Arrowhead Stadium erupted with their horns when the challenge was announced. The play was not reviewed.

Las Vegas scored four plays later with a 50-yard field goal to take a 20-10 lead.

That call came the day after a free kick was called when the team Atlanta Falcons Grady Jarrett fired Tampa Bay Buccaneers defender Tom Brady. The judge ruled that Jackson “without need” threw Brady to the ground, committing the penalty. Instead of being forced to punt, the Buccaneers ran out the clock 21-15 win.

“What I had was the quarterback grabbed the quarterback while he was still in the pocket and threw him to the ground unnecessarily,” umpire Jerome Boger told a pool reporter after the game. “I made my decision based on that.”

The NFL rulebook states, “Any physical action against a player in possession of a pass (ie, before, during, or after the pass) that is, in the opinion of the referee, an unjustifiable circumstance of the play shall be called a foul.”

The rule book also states: “When there is doubt about roughness or potentially dangerous tactics against a defender, the referee should always recognize the roughness of the pass.”

The NFL was subsequently criticized for failing to protect quarterbacks Dolphins defender Tua Tagavailoa was carried off the field on a stretcher after a hard hit in a game against Cincinnati. Tagovailoa suffered a concussion when his head hit the Bengals’ turf Josh Tupouwhich was not specified in the play.

Here’s a sample of the social media reaction after Jones’ penalty:

The Associated Press contributed to this report.