It won’t do the Commanders any good now, but the NFL is offering a mea culpa for a no-call at the end of their loss to the Giants last Sunday.
The league told the Commanders that officials should have called a defensive pass interference on Darnay Holmes in the end zone on Washington’s final play of the game, NFL Network reported Saturday.
Instead, after Holmes made plenty of contact on Curtis Samuel without a flag being thrown, the ball fell incomplete on fourth down and the Commanders turned the ball over to the Giants, who held on to win, 20-12.
“Pass interference is a judgment call,” referee John Hussey told a pool reporter after the game. “To the officials it didn’t rise to what they felt was a restriction, thus they didn’t call it. That’s basically the bottom line there.”
Had a flag been thrown for pass interference, the Commanders would have gotten a first down with another chance to score a touchdown, then would have needed a two-point conversion to tie the game.
Darnay Holmes of the Giants breaks up a pass intended for Curtis Samuel. The NFL told the Commander that a penalty should have been called on the play. Getty ImagesThe game was a crucial one for playoff implications, with the Giants improving to 8-5-1 and the Commanders falling to 7-6-1.
The missed call on the Commanders’ final play was one of a handful that coach Ron Rivera was upset with following the loss.
“Don’t ask me about the refereeing,” Rivera said. “Because I can’t answer the question.”
