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Kansas City Chiefs fans appeared to be throwing bottles at Raiders players as they left the field at halftime following a controversial roughing of the passer call on Las Vegas quarterback Derek Carr by Chris Jones.
During the second quarter of the Monday Night Football clash, the Raiders had developed a 17-7 lead when the Kansas City Chiefs appeared to have stopped Las Vegas on a third-and-8.
Chiefs’ star defensive lineman Jones not only fired Carr, but also managed to dislodge the ball from the Raiders’ quarterback before it hit the ground.
Kansas City Chiefs fans threw bottles at Raiders players as they left the field at halftime after controversial rough treatment from passerby on Las Vegas quarterback Derek Carr
Chiefs’ star defensive lineman Chris Jones (right) fired Carr and drove the ball
Jones appeared to have stopped the Las Vegas Raiders on a third and 8 with the game
However, officials quickly stopped the Chiefs’ celebrations as they threw a yellow flag, Reigning Jones had roughed Carr by landing on him with his full body weight.
The decision led to a field goal for the Raiders, who quickly fired kicker Daniel Carlson through the uprights to extend their lead to 20-7.
A clip posted to social media showed home fans launching bottles or cans at Raiders players and staff as they left the field at halftime shortly after the controversial phone call.
A Raiders coach appeared to be pointing at onlookers and could be seen dodging the incoming missiles.
Officials ruled Jones rocked Carr by landing on him with his full body weight
Football fans and former players were equally outraged by the decision on social media when they came out with the ‘worst ever’.
One fan wrote on social media: ‘Carr technically tackled Chris Jones and Chris Jones called for roughing up the passerby??? Force fumble, recovery and penalized. Must be the worst call ever #MNF’
Former New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton also chimed in, saying, “Terrible call @Chiefs @Raiders game. @NFLOfficiating needs a lot of work to rough up the passerby!!’
One account claimed the defensive ending was cursed when they posted, “Chris Jones has both of the worst pre-processed passer calls I’ve ever seen, bro is actually cursed.”
Football fans and former players were equally outraged by the decision on social media
Many disagreed that Jones had successfully dislodged the ball and Carr lost possession of it.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Network Insider said, “Chris Jones just became the first player in NFL history to be called upon to rough up the passer while holding the ball.”
A fan labeled the competition a joke when they appeared stunned by the call. They posted, “How can it “rough the passer” if he’s never made a pass and lost the ball?! NFL is a joke! #noflags #badrules’
Former tight end Shannon Sharpe also questioned the call when he posted: ‘How do you get the passer rough when the passer no longer has the ��? That’s a BULLJIVE call’
ESPN’s Field Yates joked that “the NFL has announced a new rule that when a defensive player tackles the QB, it automatically roughs the passer.”
Many on social media disagreed that Jones had successfully expelled the ball
Many football fans believed the play should have ended as one of the best in Jones’ career and they argued that he had been unfairly punished instead.
“One of Chris Jones’ best plays of his career gets the worst call in NFL history,” one user claimed.
“Absolutely terrible phone call. You can’t make a better game than Chris Jones made. That’s a game-changing game,” added another.
One football fan labeled the penalty a ‘fake’, adding: ‘What should be considered one of the best plays in Chris Jones’ career and Chiefs history is instead a fake penalty.’
Some fans insisted the piece should have ended as one of the best in Jones’ career
The call comes just one day after an equally controversial rough treatment from passerby on Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady.
Brady and Tampa Bay led the Falcons 21-15 with just over three minutes left when he was sacked by Grady Jarrett for a loss of 10 yards on third deficit.
But Jarrett’s seemingly routine sack was signaled for ripping off the passerby, giving the Bucs another run of downs, pulling them forward 15 yards.
Twitter was also heavily criticized for the decision when it was made in the fourth quarter, and social media users compared the two incidents when they criticized the NFL for two controversial phone calls within one day.
Tom Brady threw for 351 yards and a touchdown in Sunday’s 21-15 win over the Falcons
Former soccer star Taylor Twellman wrote: ‘The call to Brady. The call to Carr. Pathetic @NFL on duty. #NFL’
“I don’t know what Chris Jones should do, just like I didn’t do what Grady Jarrett had to do yesterday. Common sense, umpires,” says Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated.
One fan urged the league to end the divisive phone calls they made: “First Brady gets to kick like a toddler and gets a phone call that prevented Atlanta from getting another drive. This now about Chris Jones. Back to back days. Brutal is an understatement. This has got to end, NFL…”
Another supporter admitted the league had “two bad days” but insisted the controversy happened every week.
They posted: ‘This is embarrassing. the NFL is having a really bad two days, but it seems like every week there is a bad harbinger of the passer call. the one on Brady yesterday was a disgrace. Jarrett shouldn’t have been punished, nor Chris Jones here.”
Social media users criticized the NFL for two controversial phone calls in a single day
NFL Referee Jerome Boger later defended his decision to penalize the Atlanta Falcons for “roughing” Brady in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sunday.
“What I had was the defender grabbed the quarterback while he was still in the pocket and threw him to the ground unnecessarily,” Boger said in a post-game report. “I made my decision on that.”
The league’s third black umpire to serve in the NFL since 2004 added that he had “not necessarily” been instructed to keep a close eye on quarterbacks’ pockets after Tagovailoa’s concussion earlier this season.