Thursday night’s showdown between the Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens had Al Michaels calling the officials out nearing the end following an incompletion from Joe Burrow.
The Ravens mounted an impressive comeback to win 35-34 and improve to 7-3, breaking hearts in Cincy after keeping the Bengals out of the end zone on an attempt at a two-point conversion.
Zac Taylor decided to go for it after a Ja’Marr Chase touchdown brought them to within one, but Burrow missed his target and ultimately handed the ball back to Baltimore with less than a minute to go.
The refs also missed a roughing the passer penalty and a defensive holding on the play, sparking outrage on social media.
Even Michaels joined the criticism, bemoaning the fact that too many NFL games are ruined by missed calls.
You can hear his complaint in the video below:
Unfiltered Al Michaels: "Too many games end this way. They just do. You miss calls. The whole thing. So frustrating for the fans. So frustrating."pic.twitter.com/DkOH6xhnD2 https://t.co/HhCkRpvWVa
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 8, 2024
Social Media Mostly Sided With Al Michaels
Fans were mostly in agreement with the veteran broadcaster as they joined him in lashing out at the refs.
“Al Micheals is a real one for this!” someone wrote.
“NFL got exactly what they wanted…” said a second.
“Agreed – the league is scripted,” a third added.
“nothing but facts. too many games decided by referees. picking and choosing when to call a foul when they are so freaking obvious 😭,” a comment read.
“The games are rigged. Don’t take this league too seriously,” a user suggested.
The refs decide how these games end and it’s frustrating
— Harecules (@harecules) November 8, 2024
Of course, some folks had different feelings on the matter.
“I mean is it a flag ? Yea but it has 0 impact on the result of this play,” a fan claimed.
“Oh shut the f**k up, Al. The refs were horrible all night and affected the Ravens negatively 90% of the time,” another wrote.
Does the NFL have a refereeing problem?
