ESPN's Troy Aikman blasts referees for 'ridiculous' delay in making call

2025-01-12 16:27:14 source:lotradecoin setup category:Contact

It's become a familiar refrain this season as NFL officials have come under heavy criticism seemingly every week for missed calls, unusual calls or a general lack of consistency.

But things may have reached a peak on ABC's national broadcast of Monday Night Football when Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman called out Land Clark's officiating crew for taking too long to come to a decision on what seemed like a relatively innocuous play.

With under a minute to go in the first half, a kickoff hit New York Giants special teamer Lawrence Cager's leg and bounced out of bounds, something officials didn't see initially when they threw a penalty flag.

"Just make the call," Aikman exclaimed. "There’s 13 seconds left in the half. Just make a decision and this is what stops all of these games. The officials I know they’ve been talked about every week but this is ridiculous what we’re watching right now."

All told, it took several minutes for the officials to come to the conclusion that the ball did, in fact, hit Cager and there was no penalty on the play.

NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.

The criticism was pretty harsh, especially coming from Aikman, who's not known for frequent hot takes in the broadcast booth.

The Giants ended up taking a knee and running out the final seconds of the first half, which they would likely have done anyway, even with the penalty.

Aikman's comments also came under unique circumstances, with the Giants-Packers game airing on broadcast television instead of cable.

ABC was airing one of two Monday Night Football broadcasts going on simultaneously. ESPN, which usually has a single game on Monday nights, was carrying the Miami Dolphins vs. the Tennessee Titans.

More:Contact

Recommend

Wisconsin kayaker who faked his death and fled to Eastern Europe is in custody, online records show

GREEN LAKE, Wis. (AP) — A Wisconsin man who faked his own drowningand left his wife and three childr

Mazda’s American EV was a flop. Could these Chinese Mazdas be more popular?

There’s no sugar-coating the truth: the Mazda MX-30 was a flop. Mazda’s first EV sold in the U.S. ha

The 4 officers killed in North Carolina were tough but kind and loved their jobs, friends say

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The four officers killed in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Monday in the deadl