Former Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has never been shy about sharing his mind, and despite only playing four snaps this season, he’s been in the news a lot.
To wrap out his final few years in Green Bay, Pack supporters were accustomed to his dissatisfaction with the front office and apparently continual turmoil over a number of problems.
He’s taken a brave position in the face of controversy for refusing the vaccine, and he recently accused reporters of singling him out and targeting him entirely for political reasons related to that contentious decision.
To be fair, Aaron Rodgers takes a lot of heat, but it’s wonderful to hear a quarterback of his caliber take firm opinions on delicate issues and never waver, even when the media, fans, and/or Howe talking heads are outraged.
Last week, the Ringer published a nasty essay about Rodgers, accusing him of wanting attention since his Achilles injury in Week 1 and blaming him for the New York Jets’ failure this season.
Rodgers, as always, hit back and remained firm.
However, on Tuesday, the Jets quarterback was questionved about one of the season’s more contentious calls, which occurred at the close of the Cowboys-Lions game on Saturday.
Former Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers recalls a painful memory for Pack fans and demands accountability for referees.
On Tuesday, Rodgers appeared on the Pat McAfee show and was asked about the contentious ending — which many believe the refs botched — that cost the Detroit Lions a victory over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.
Co-host Darius Butler questioned Rodgers if he’d ever been involved in a similar contentious play, then inquired as to where the Jets quarterback thought the responsibility lay.
“Is it on the ref, is it on Detroit because they were trying to get a little too cute with it, what do you think about it?” Butler inquired.
Aaron Rodgers instantly brought up one of Green Bay Packers fans’ greatest nightmares.
“I was a part of the Fail, Mary, DB,” Rodgers said.
“When the NFL went too cheap and hired a bunch of people who didn’t belong on a high school field, they couldn’t even ref my JC games.” North Cal Junior College deserves respect since they play at a high level of football, and we wouldn’t want those refs reffing our games.”
Rodgers is referring to the 2012 Monday Night Football game against the Seattle Seahawks, which Seattle won on the final play of the game in a contentious call that the NFL eventually recognized was incorrect.
Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson fired a Hail Mary throw into the end zone intended for wide receiver Golden Tate on the game’s last play. Tate and Packers cornerback M. D. Jennings both got their hands on the ball while both were still in the air trying to gain possession. The two referees near the play initially signaled touchdown and touchback before concluding the players had simultaneous possession, culminating in a game-winning score for the Seahawks.
Tate shoved Packers defender Sam Shields with both hands prior to the catch, which the NFL later recognized should have resulted in an offensive pass interference penalty, negating the touchdown and resulting in a Green Bay Packers victory. The lack of a pass interference penalty and the determination of a score via simultaneous catch drew criticism from the game’s broadcasters, NFL players, and the media in the aftermath. The NFL then issued a statement upholding the touchdown call but acknowledging that offensive pass interference occurred, resulting in a Packers victory.
The former Packers standout then weighed in on the Saturday refereeing issue involving the Lions and Cowboys.
“Listen, there’s been a lot of talk about the play, and I think everyone wants some accountability.” I’m not sure why three guys went to the referee. “I saw Sewell, Decker, and 70 leave, right?”
He then implies that head referee Brad Allen is to blame.
“I don’t know what Brad was thinking here, it seems like he just left before what could be said.”
The second half of the video below, released by NFL Insider Ian Rapoport on X, explains why the NFL sided with the officials and includes footage of the contentious moment.
After the Lions scored a touchdown to pull within one point, coach Dan Campbell decided to go for two and the win. To confuse the Cowboys, Campbell sent out multiple linemen, with just one reporting as eligible.
Unfortunately for them, it also perplexed Allen and the rest of his officiating crew, so while quarterback Jared Goff connected with offensive tackle Taylor Decker to appear to take the lead on the convert, an unlawful touching penalty wiped out the play. Detroit would later miss the game-winning field goal attempt, as Dallas won 20-19.
While the Lions made an unusual option, they did not incur a penalty in that situation, despite the NFL’s contention, according to Raporport:
In a recent league memo, he said, the league gave an example of a player properly reporting to the officials when entering the game — and while all three players seemed to check in with referee Brad Allen against the Cowboys, the NFL effectively faulted Detroit.
According to Rodgers, the video appears to show Allen walking away before the new players have even had a chance to report.
And that wasn’t the only major blunder by the officials that damaged the Lions’ chances of a big win in a game settled by a single point.
That wasn’t Allen’s only contentious call on Saturday; they also called a tripping penalty on the Cowboys when it should have been on the Lions.
Aaron Rodgers has made it obvious that he believes there was an injustice against his old division opponent during his time with the Packers.
The former Packers standout then weighed in on the Saturday refereeing issue involving the Lions and Cowboys.
“Listen, there’s been a lot of talk about the play, and I think everyone wants some accountability.” I’m not sure why three guys went to the referee. “I saw Sewell, Decker, and 70 leave, right?”
He then implies that head referee Brad Allen is to blame.
“I don’t know what Brad was thinking here, it seems like he just left before what could be said.”
The second half of the video below, released by NFL Insider Ian Rapoport on X, explains why the NFL sided with the officials and includes footage of the contentious moment.
After the Lions scored a touchdown to pull within one point, coach Dan Campbell decided to go for two and the win. To confuse the Cowboys, Campbell sent out multiple linemen, with just one reporting as eligible.
Unfortunately for them, it also perplexed Allen and the rest of his officiating crew, so while quarterback Jared Goff connected with offensive tackle Taylor Decker to appear to take the lead on the convert, an unlawful touching penalty wiped out the play. Detroit would later miss the game-winning field goal attempt, as Dallas won 20-19.
While the Lions made an unusual option, they did not incur a penalty in that situation, despite the NFL’s contention, according to Raporport:
In a recent league memo, he said, the league gave an example of a player properly reporting to the officials when entering the game — and while all three players seemed to check in with referee Brad Allen against the Cowboys, the NFL effectively faulted Detroit.
According to Rodgers, the video appears to show Allen walking away before the new players have even had a chance to report.
And that wasn’t the only major blunder by the officials that damaged the Lions’ chances of a big win in a game settled by a single point.
That wasn’t Allen’s only contentious call on Saturday; they also called a tripping penalty on the Cowboys when it should have been on the Lions.
Aaron Rodgers has made it obvious that he believes there was an injustice against his old division opponent during his time with the Packers.
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