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The Washington Commanders, who were 11-point underdogs, handed the Philadelphia Eagles their first loss of the season on Monday night. But it didn’t come without a good bit of controversy.
The Commanders benefitted from a pair of late-game calls that has most Eagles fans feeling aggrieved. The first was an uncalled facemask by Washington linebacker Jamin Davis that led to a fumble that the Commanders later turned into a field goal. The second, however, was much more controversial.
Washington took possession of the ball with just under two minutes remaining in the contest up 26-21. After a pair of runs, the Commanders faced third-and-seven from midfield with 1:45 left on the clock. Washington quarterback Taylor Heinicke dropped back to pass, but when he found no one open he opted to take a knee, giving himself up. Eagles veteran defensive end Brandon Graham then hit Heinicke, drawing an unnecessary roughness flag that essentially ended the game.
Fans Debate Whether Controversial Call Which Ended Eagles-Commanders Game Was Correct
While the call was correct by the letter of the law, Heinicke certainly embellished the contact a bit. The decision gave Philadelphia its first loss of the year and not everyone loved the decision by the referee in such a tense situation.
Correct call but a weak call and coupled with the no-call…..I'd run outta there quickly if I was a ref lol
— Mina Kimes (@minakimes) November 15, 2022
Terrible call. Graham needs to allowed the time to stop his momentum. I assure you if Hurts were hit like that they would celebrate the defensive players as making a great play with no flag even thought of. Ref should be fired immediately.
— David Bohr (@David_Bohr) November 15, 2022
The call on Heinicke to end the game was 100% the correct call to make
But it was soooo soft I hate that the game ended like that
Oh well
— Luke Sawhook 🪚🪝 (@lukesawhook) November 15, 2022
Birds didn’t deserve a W but that was such a soft way to end this game. Pathetic call
— GriffyBets (@griffybets) November 15, 2022
Others, however, thought it was the correct call and didn’t see why people were complaining.
https://twitter.com/james4er15/status/1592459506059214848?s=20&t=PjQ4XVsuE5X-hBvFw6MGWQ
https://twitter.com/HTTCQUINN/status/1592383713131651072?s=20&t=PjQ4XVsuE5X-hBvFw6MGWQ
https://twitter.com/therealaaronk/status/1592377375185985536?s=20&t=PjQ4XVsuE5X-hBvFw6MGWQ
The victory was huge for Washington. Not only did it move the team to 5-5 on the year, but it also put the Commanders just half a game behind the San Francisco 49ers for the final Wild Card spot in the NFC.
The victory was also a special one for head coach Ron Rivera. Rivera’s mother Dolores passed away on Oct. 31 after a battle with lung cancer. The Commanders’ head coach dedicated the victory to her and teared up while offering a postgame speech.