NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – JANUARY 05: Alexander Hollins #15 of the Minnesota Vikings is unable to catch a pass as he is defended by Chauncey Gardner-Johnson #22 of the New Orleans Saints during the second half in the NFC Wild Card Playoff game at Mercedes Benz Superdome on January 05, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Just a year after getting robbed of a Super Bowl berth on a blown pass interference call, the New Orleans Saints were once again the victims of poor officiating.
Final/OT
New Orleans Saints
20
Minnesota Vikings
26
There’s a great chance that Saints’ fans are beginning to feel like there is a conspiracy against their football team. New Orleans was denied a trip to the Super Bowl last year when officials missed a clear pass interference call on Los Angeles Rams’ defensive back Nickell Robey-Coleman, leading to a change in the rules allowing those calls to be reviewed.
Fast forward to today, with the Saints and Vikings tied at 20 in overtime. With Minnesota facing third and goal from the 4-yard line, Kirk Cousins threw a fade pass to the corner of the end zone to Kyle Rudolph, but a closer look at the play reveals yet another missed call by the officials.
If you look closely at the play, you can see Rudolph clearly extend his arm to push away the defender, creating separation to complete the catch. That is the textbook definition of offensive pass interference, and the referees not only didn’t call the foul but didn’t bother to look at it on replay review.
Saints’ fans were furious, throwing things onto the field as the referees ran off into the tunnel. This is a devastating end to the season for the Saints, who were forced to play a home game on Wild Card weekend despite a 13-3 record due to tiebreakers in the loaded NFC, and they went home after being unable to contain Dalvin Cook and the Minnesota offense.
This non-call is sure to ignite the debate about the pass interference rules once again, and the fact the same team was hurt by a bad call is a terrible look for the NFL. Everyone should be talking about how impressive a performance the Vikings put on in this game, but instead the conversation will revolve around the officiating once again.