The Cleveland Browns
have struggled with recurring false start penalties throughout the first six weeks of the 2026 season, and the issue has continued to hurt the team. However, during their Week 7 matchup against the Tennessee Titans
, the Browns may have avoided another costly false start thanks to an officiating mistake. Had the penalty been called, it could have changed the outcome of the game and potentially prevented Cleveland from securing a win and improving to 5-2.
On first-and-10 late in the fourth quarter with less than a minute remaining, the score was tied at 24. Quarterback Deshaun Watson threw a pass to Harold Fannin Jr., who carried the Browns into the field goal range. However, as Watson was attempting his throw, right tackle Dawand Jones appeared to jump early on the snap and no flag came.
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NFL analyst Ari Meirvo later put the officials on blast for the miss, sharing the play on X
. "I have no idea how there isn't a false start on Cleveland here on the play that got them in FG range. I mean, c'mon," he wrote.
His criticism targeted the crew directly, since the no-call came on the exact play that set up the game-winning kick. Fans soon joined in, criticizing the referees for missing the false start.
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"League wants Cleveland to win since they've been poverty for so long," wrote an angry fan, while another added, "the refs have been terrible today."
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In the end, it's safe to say that the officiating mistake ultimately hurt the Titans. Watson connected to Fannin Jr., who ran to the Tennessee 19 for a 36-yard gain. Ultimately, Andre Szmyt kicked a 32-yard field goal to seal a 27-24 win for the Browns in the final seconds. The criticism for the officiating was evident.
"Refs missed one on the Titans TD before, they were awful for both sides today," one fan wrote, while another called out Jones for the false start directly, writing, "There should be an expedited review on that all the time! He's always moving way too early."
"There's a line judge on the field and not sure what he was looking at. I don't quite understand how that's not called. Clear as day," another fan expressed their frustration.
Although the Browns won the game, false starts have become a problem for Todd Monken's team. Cleveland has reportedly recorded 10 false starts so far this season. Meanwhile, Tytus Howard has been at the center of attention and has been flagged for five false starts through the Browns' first three games, including three against the Carolina Panthers.
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"Well, you started with the false starts, and then you went to how he played," said Monken of Howard's three false starts. "So that's really two questions, but I appreciate that. First off, if you're trying to anticipate the snap count, and I told Tytus this today, it's like a defensive lineman trying to anticipate the snap count. And if you jump offsides, you false start once, okay, right, like, all right, I get it. After that, it's over.
"It's not okay. It's not kosher anymore. Okay, so that's on him. He knows it, and we got to get it cleaned up. And the other one, I think Tytus has done a great job of battling through little nicks and bruises that have come up throughout each game. And I think as the year goes on, and we're doing the same things over and over, I think he's just going to continue to play at a high level."
Against the Titans, however, the false start went uncalled. While Jones appeared to commit a penalty, he wasn't punished by the officials, as the Browns now sit at 5-2 after the first seven games of the season.
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