The Pittsburgh Steelers visit the Baltimore Ravens with their season on the line on Saturday afternoon. The Ravens have already wrapped up home-field advantage for the playoffs, with Head Coach John Harbaugh noting that the team already has an eye on their postseason plans. It's still Steelers versus Ravens, and Harbaugh's group would love to be the ones to put an end to Pittsburgh's playoff hopes. Both teams learned on Tuesday that the game is going to be officiated by a crew that's been in the middle of a huge controversy shaking NFL officiating.
Sam Hodde / AP Photo
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott (4) talks with referee Brad Allen (122) before an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Saturday, Dec. 30, 2023, in Arlington, Texas.
Adam Schefter of ESPN posted on X on Tuesday afternoon that Brad Allen will be working the contest between Pittsburgh and Baltimore. The veteran official has been refereeing games at the NFL level since 2014, but has been on the wrong end of some controversial calls (or non-calls) in 2023. The latest and probably biggest gaffe came in Week 17 during the game on Saturday night between the Detroit Lions and the Dallas Cowboys.
Referee Brad Allen and his crew — who last worked Saturday night’s Lions-Cowboys game — have been assigned to Saturday’s Steelers-Ravens game on ESPN. So back on national television. pic.twitter.com/q5Uqo2j1tU
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 2, 2024
The Lions trailed 20-13 and got the ball back with 1:41 left to go in the game. Quarterback Jared Goff led his team down the field with three passes to tight end Sam LaPorta and a 14-yard completion to Amon Ra St. Brown to put the Lions on Dallas' 11-yard line with :43 seconds remaining. The veteran quarterback spiked the ball with :29 seconds left and then tossed an 11-yard touchdown to St. Brown. The Lions and Head Coach Dan Campbell opted to try to go for the win with a two-point conversion.
Junfu Han / Detroit Free Press
Detroit Lions tackle Taylor Decker hauls in a pass from Jared Goff on a two-point conversion that would've won the Lions the game if not for a penalty.
On their first attempt, tackle Taylor Decker was left wide open in the end zone, and it looked like the Lions were going to walk away with a victory. A penalty flag for an ineligible receiver against Decker negated the score however, and forced the Lions to try again. Decker insisted to the media that he had reported as eligible. Allen explained in a pool report that number 70, tackle Dan Skipper, had reported as eligible, not Decker. This made it an illegal play.
The Lions tried again for the two-point convert, and a penalty on Micah Parsons for defensive offside negated a second attempt. On their third try, Goff's pass intended for tight end James Mitchell fell incomplete. The Cowboys got the ball back after an onside kick try and knelt to kill the clock to get the win.
Steelers' Get Allen Despite Reports The Crew Would Be Downgraded
Following the game, Schefter was on SportsCenter to break down the controversial call and potential consequences. He said it was a very confusing situation with three linemen huddled near the official. In trying to confuse the Cowboys, the Lions ended up muddying things for the referees.
NFL Photos
NFL official Brad Allen (middle) talks with a coach and another official during an NFL game.
Schefter continued that it's not the first time the Allen crew has been the center of a controversial call. During the Green Bay Packers game against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 13, a non-call for pass interference against the Packers resulted in an incompletion from Patrick Mahomes to Marquez Valdes-Scantling. He said that for the postseason, the league will go to mixed crews and that chances are that most of Allen's crew will not be selected.
The Allen group, it seems, hasn't drawn too much ire from the league itself despite many folks around the league being disgusted over the call in the Lions-Cowboys game. Allen is sure to be under a microscope as the Steelers and Ravens duke it out on Saturday in a stand-alone game.
Are you worried about the officiating for Saturday's game? What do you make of the controversy from the Lions-Cowboys game? Comment below!
#SteelerNation
