Pittsburgh Steelers FS Minkah Fitzpatrick was on the wrong end of an unnecessary roughness call that led to a critical Indianapolis Colts touchdown to give them a two-score lead. A call so questionable even CBS Sports rules expert Gene Steratore thought it was blatantly missed.
Backup Colts QB Joe Flacco, who replaced the injured Anthony Richardson early in the game, fired deep down the left sideline to rookie WR A.D. Mitchell late in the third quarter. Fitzpatrick came flying over from his deep-half landmark to contest the play. Mitchell essentially gave up and slowed down as Fitzpatrick finished the play, making hard shoulder-to-shoulder contact with Mitchell. The officials threw a flag for unnecessary roughness and illegal contact to the head.
Asked to weigh in on the call, former NFL official and current CBS Sports rules expert Gene Steratore says it was the wrong one.
“Minkah’s closing on this play 100 miles per hour and he is pulling up,” Steratore told the CBS crew. “You gotta play safety that way. He is pulling up. It’s not contact to the head and neck. It’s not a safety play. I just think that’s a football play. I think if you take a look at that one again, I think you want to take that back, fellas.”
But the penalty stood, giving the Colts 15 yards and a fresh set of downs. Indianapolis would use multiple third-and-long conversions to put the ball in the end zone at the start of the fourth quarter, Flacco finding TE Drew Ogletree for a 15-yard score on 3rd and 10. That gave the Colts a 24-10 lead.
Had the call not been made, Indianapolis would’ve faced 3rd and 10 from its own 42. Instead, the Colts were awarded a first down at Pittsburgh’s 43.
In today’s world, refs make calls on the side of caution. And though they have a tough job to do, this was a blatant missed call that gave the Colts life on an important drive.
As of this writing, the Steelers have again made it a one-possession game as Justin Fields rushed for his second touchdown of the day.
