Bogus Steelers penalty against the Jets results in disaster for Pittsburgh
By Tommy Jaggi
Well, that escalated quickly. The Pittsburgh Steelers owned the early momentum against the New York Jets on Sunday Night Football. On the first drive of the game, Russell Wilson and the offense marched the ball down the field and punched in a field goal.
The defense was on fire early. New York's offense earned negative five yards on their opening drive and went three and out. The next time the Jets got the ball, Pittsburgh swarmed running back Breece Hall for what would have been a tackle for a loss.
That's when the referees threw a penalty for a bogus call on Pittsburgh.
As Hall was getting gang tackled by Steelers defenders, defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi threw Hall to the ground as the refs blew the whistle. Shockingly, this display of effort that occurred microseconds after the whistle was apparently enough to warrant a 15-yard personal foul call.
On the very next play, Aaron Rodgers found Hall for an 18-yard catch-and-run. Seven plays later, Hall punched in a rushing touchdown.
Steelers already working against the officials
A bogus call against Larry Ogunjobi gave the Jets new life. Instead of potentially stopping New York's offense to three-and-outs on back-to-back possessions to open the game, this controversial call resulted in seven points for the Jets -- giving them the early lead over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
With Russell Wilson at the helm, we knew this offense was going to have its growing pains. Now being forced to play from behind won't help. Many more calls in a game like this could be enough to do the Steelers in for the night.
Regardless, Pittsburgh needs to find a way to overcome some questionable officiating and bounce back. There's a lot riding on this game.