The Tennessee Titans didn't lose to the Cleveland Browns because of officiating alone. Robert Saleh's defense outright melted down in the spotlight, and as has become an unfortunate tradition, Cam Ward struggled to keep the offense afloat again.
It was an uneven effort on both sides of the ball. Yet, Tennessee found themselves tied with Cleveland, 24-24, with under two minutes to play. That's where the refereeing issue comes in.
The Browns broke the game open and got into field-goal range on a huge play from TE Harold Fannin Jr. But if a blatant false start penalty on OT Dawand Jones was correctly called, that play never happens in the first place.
Cleveland would've been set back five yards, their momentum dashed. The Titans' defense would've had their first opportunity on that final drive to reset. Instead, the Browns push the ball into the home team's territory and take the victory on an easy 32-yard kick, 27-24.
Not only is this a "what could have been" scenario, but it's a "what should have been." We're not the only ones banging this drum, either. The missed false start became a huge point of contention online after the Titans lost.
The clip, posted below, went viral when NFL Insider Ari Meirov shared it to call attention to the false start. "I have no idea how there isn't a false start on Cleveland here on the play that got them in FG range," Meirov said.
His post picked up 7,000+ likes and more than 500 replies. We've touched on questionable calls up to this point, but none as widespread and inarguable as this one.
The button was so hot regarding this play that Coach Saleh himself was asked about it after the game, to which he unceremoniously replied: "Talking with the referees about a guy being offsides is pointless."
Saleh is unfortunately right, even if Titans fans would prefer he take up his pitchfork and join their riot. Tennessee being left at 1-6 tells a broader story of a franchise with bigger issues than bad calls. Still, it's painful to see this team within reach of a massive second straight win, only for it to be torn away as a potential result of something folks could see from the comfort of their own couch.
The Titans have no choice but to put this away and keep on keeping on. However, no apparent officiating miscue has cost Tennessee quite so much as this one since September. Let's hope we don't look back on it as the wrong kind of turning point in a few months.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/titans/onsi as The 1 Egregious Referee Call That Cost Titans a Late Chance vs. Browns .
