Malcolm Jenkins wants to ban Pete Morelli from officiating Eagles games
The infamous Pete Morelli may have frustrated more than just the fans last Thursday
The Philadelphia Eagles are coming off of a big victory against the Carolina Panthers last week. The nerve-racking ending had everyone on the edge of their seats. Although the 28-23 victory may have felt good for a minute, that didn’t stop the frustrated Philadelphia fan base from voicing their opinions. They are not alone though, Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins has the city’s back on this one.
The main story of the night wasn’t the three interceptions that the Eagles defense forced. It also wasn’t the three touchdown passes that Carson Wentz threw without his key lineman, Lane Johnson. It was the lopsided officiating by Pete Morelli and his crew. In the beginning of the game, the Eagles committed two questionable penalties that gave them an early setback on offense. Normally, you can shrug off an early questionable call or two, but it didn’t stop there.
The Eagles ended up committing 10 penalties for a whopping total of 126 yards. You would think there would be a ton of flags thrown both ways then, right? Wrong. The Panthers committed one penalty for one yard. Now it may have been clear that they have gotten away with a few, but Eagles fans won’t soon forget how it could’ve affected their chance to win the game.
The petition:
You may have heard by now that the Eagles fanbase has decided to take a stand against Pete Morelli and company. A petition was put together to ban Morelli from officiating Eagles games this season. As of Tuesday morning, it gained over 60,000 signatures. The fans aren’t the only ones who are willing to petition against the referee, though.
Eagles captain Malcolm Jenkins was informed about the petition earlier in the week. When he was asked whether he would sign it or not, he told Eagles fans exactly what they wanted to hear. According to Andrew Parent of PhillyVoice, Jenkins said that he would definitely sign the petition if it came across his desk. Talk about a real leader taking charge.
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Considering how ineffective petitions towards the NFL have been in the past, this will more than likely come out not in favor of the Eagles. It doesn’t hurt to try though. After all, the Eagles were penalized 40 times for 396 yards over the last four games Morelli officiated. Although he may not be banned from calling Eagles games, maybe there will be a change in the future.