Chiefs receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster took a vicious hit on Sunday from Jaguars safety Andre Cisco. A flag initially was thrown. Then, “after discussion,” it was picked up.
After the game, multiple Chiefs players spoke out about the failure to rule that Smith-Schuster had taken a hit to the helmet while defenseless.
Receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling (photographed speaking to an official after the play) asked a very pointed question. Via P.J. Green of Fox 4 in Kansas City, Valdes-Scantling said, “Are they really protecting us?”
They claim to be. They also want the officials to throw the flag in close cases involving hits to the head of defenseless players. At best, this one was close. At worst, it was just a bad call.
It would be interesting to know whether the officials on the field received input from those with eyes on video. That’s not supposed to happen. But from time to time it seems to occur. Or, at a minimum, suspicion arises that it has.
I’m fine with it, as long as they turn a mistake into not a mistake. If technology is used to create a mistake, it’s better to not use it at all.
