Philadelphia Eagles plan on scouting Super Bowl’s officiating crew

The Philadelphia Eagles plan on scouting Super Bowl LII’s officiating crew.

Say what you will. We all believe it’s a sign of poor sportsmanship to complain about officiating. Still, we’re all aware that it does play a part in the outcome of games. With that in mind, let’s be honest. The New England Patriots have benefited a time or two from officiating. The Philadelphia Eagles have been screwed by it.

With that thought in mind, they plan to make it a point to scout Super Bowl LII’s officiating crew, Gene Steratore and company. This according to ESPN’s Sal Paolantonio. It was Steratore’s crew that handled the most recent AFC Championship Game. It was that game that propelled the Patriots to Super Bowl LII.

‘The Birds’ are paying close attention to detail in Super Bowl LII.

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Philly plans to pay close attention to the way Steratore and company handled defensive holding and pass interference calls. That’s not to imply that bad calls aided the Patriots to victory (cough cough). The Eagles just want to make sure they’re educated on what may be allowable and what isn’t by the time the game rolls around.

After all, the Jacksonville Jaguars were penalized six times for 98 yards as opposed to the one penalty that was called on New England.

“We kind of use that to understand what they like to call.. and pretty much just help us play a cleaner game so we know what to expect from them and they know what to expect from us” said Eagles linebacker Nigel Bradham.

Next: 5 players that are key to a Super Bowl LII victory

Why is all of this important? Super Bowl officiating crews are kind of an all-star lineup. During the regular season, crews headed by Steratore called 43 penalties for everything viewed in the pass interference window (P.I., illegal contact or defensive holding). The officials making up the remainder of Steratore’s crew were, collectively, pretty prone to throw the flag for pass interference as well.

The Eagles are wise to study.