As the Buffalo Bills marched up-and-down the field in the second-half, the Patriots defense thought they finally got a stop.
On 3rd-and-4, Josh Allen’s pass to Keon Coleman fell to the turf. As Coleman dove
to try and haul the pass in, cornerback Carlton Davis’ left hand briefly found the receiver’s hip as his right hand stretched out for the football.
When Davis jumped up off the ground thinking he forced an incompletion, he was instead left with frustration as he saw the back judge throw a late pass interference penalty.
“I mean, you can see how late the flag came out,” Davis said at his locker. “Like, if it’s a flag, it’s like definitive, you know, throw the flag. If it’s not a flag, in a close game like this, you got to let us play. You know what I’m saying? So just by seeing how late the flag came in, I think we’re all thinking the same thing.”
Despite the minimal contact by Davis, the flag gave Buffalo a new set of downs at the New England 32-yard line. They needed just three plays to find the end zone.
“It’s frustrating. You know what’s on the line. This game is so close, and it comes down to a game of inches, and at that moment, you’re either going to throw the flag or you’re not,” Davis added. “You don’t take 10 seconds to throw a flag. Like, if it’s a definitive flag, throw it. If it’s not, let us play.”
The penalty came one possession after another controversial call in the same area of the field. With Buffalo facing a fourth-down, a deep shot by Josh Allen appeared to end up in the hands of cornerback Marcus Jones.
A 37-yard catch was instead awarded to wide receiver Keon Coleman, while Jones was flagged for defensive pass interference — which was then declined — in the process.
“I would say I was trying to get back in the phase, and I jumped around and came out with the ball,” Jones said. “But the referee called a pass interference, so that’s what he called it.”
Buffalo scored just plays later, as part of four straight second-half touchdowns that helped them come from behind to beat New England 35-31.
“The same guy thought it was a penalty the same way. So, it’s a judgment call,” Mike Vrabel said. “Whether I disagree with it or not doesn’t matter. He called it. That’s how this thing goes.”
