The vast majority of NFL fans who watched the Titans' 22-21 win over the Chiefs on Saturday agreed: The AFC wild-card game was a poorly-officiated affair by referee Jeff Triplette’s crew. While fans expressing displeasure about officiating is a common occurrence in sports, a Saturday night tweet by Mike Pereira – the league’s former head of officiating turned Fox analyst – affirms the majority opinion.
Via Pro Football Talk:
Horrible way to start the playoffs. I hate to say it but this was not a good performance by the crew. Teams and fans deserve better.
— Mike Pereira (@MikePereira) January 7, 2018
Several calls were questioned, at least three having to with what is and what isn’t a fumble:
–Triplette’s most egregious miscall may have been ruling “forward progress” on what appeared to be Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson strip-sacking Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota late in the second quarter. The Titans came away with a field goal on that drive to narrow Kansas City’s lead to 14-3.
–On the Chiefs’ ensuing possession, a play that involved what may have been a fumble by tight end Travis Kelce (the one on which he sustained a concussion) was not reviewed, even though there were less than two minutes remaining in the half.
–On a two-point attempt by the Titans after they took a 22-21 lead, Chiefs safety Daniel Sorensen scooped up another apparent Mariota fumble and started making his way toward the Tennessee end zone. Again, Triplette ruled “forward progress," a call that robbed Kansas City of the chance to go up 23-22 late in the game.
Those are just three examples; there are others. Twitter, justifiably, was all over Triplette.
So far with Jeff Triplette:
— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) January 6, 2018
- ruled forward progress on a sack where Marcus Mariota never moved forward
- called a penalty on a Titans player who didn’t exist
- missed a third-down spot by three yards and cost Tennessee a challenge
If Mariota's forward progress was stopped making it not a fumble, then no big hit could ever force a fumble. That's just atrocious officiating, but it's Jeff Triplette so what do you expect?
— Peter Bukowski (@Peter_Bukowski) January 6, 2018
Mariota with the biggest block of the game. He catches a TD. Andy Reid doesn't use his running back. Chiefs choke. Triplette pathetic. Mularkey wrongly goes for 2, saves job, and the worst playoff team I've seen wins. You gotta love sports. Or something. Wow. And I was wrong.
— Adam Schein (@AdamSchein) January 7, 2018
Triplett-induced outrage ongoing. Twice he has called Mariota fumbles dead. Giving Tennessee five points.
— Pat Forde (@YahooForde) January 7, 2018
An actual zebra would be doing a better job than Jeff Triplette tonight.
— Will Brinson (@WillBrinson) January 6, 2018
Some NFL observers saw this coming, tweeting early in the game that it was doomed to be littered with bad calls.
JEFF TRIPLETTE GOT A PLAYOFF ASSIGNMENT?!?!?!?
— Doug Farrar (@BR_DougFarrar) January 6, 2018
Didn’t factor in The Jeff Triplette Experience when breaking down this game #AFCWildCard
— David Steele (@David_C_Steele) January 6, 2018
Triplette’s post-game explanation about “forward progress” is unlikely to satisfy the complainers, least of all the Chiefs.
Pool report with referee Jeff Triplette after the #Chiefs and #Titans game: pic.twitter.com/HYn4BEFMTH
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) January 7, 2018
Kansas City coach Andy Reid said of the officiating (via NFL.com), "Listen, I don't really have anything good to say there so I'm just kind of going to stay away from any comments on those guys. Don't want to get fined or whatever. It's not worth it."
If this story has a silver lining, it’s this: Saturday’s wild-card game may be the last game of Triplette’s officiating career. According to one report, he’s leaning toward retiring from the NFL.
Referee Jeff Triplette, who worked yesterday's #Titans-#Chiefs Wild Card game, has told folks around him he's retiring from @NFL officiating. And the heartfelt hugs he exchanged w/ his crew after dinner last night? Def looked like good-byes.
— Aditi Kinkhabwala (@AKinkhabwala) January 7, 2018