Missed roughing the passer call for Carson Wentz should be a wake-up call to the O-Line
The referees missed a personal foul on Carson Wentz, but nobody should be angry with the officials.
It’s always significantly frustrating when we have to hear that game-changing penalty calls that would be in the Philadelphia Eagles favor were missed. It doesn’t mean we’re here to make excuses, because that’s the last thing we are going to do.
I would be lying if I said it wasn’t frustrating to watch referees call games so lopsided nowadays, though. Especially when it’s against the Eagles, which happens more often than not.
It happened last week against the Tennesee Titans. And before we dive into talking about the play, let me just say that I will not be cutting the Eagles any slack here.
The way the offensive line protected Carson Wentz for the past two weeks has been horrible. The Eagles almost got lucky on the strip-sack that happened in the fourth quarter, but the play should’ve never gone down like that in the first place.
If you don’t remember the play, here is the clip on the missed call.
Is this roughing the passer?
Not only did the officials pick up a flag on a late hit on a Wentz slide, they also did not call this shot to the head on Harold Landry's strip sack. I personally don't love the QB protection rules, but this is obvious, based on what they normally call. pic.twitter.com/rvYswEES9V
— Jimmy Kempski (@JimmyKempski) October 3, 2018
Seeing all of the weak roughing the passer calls over the last few weeks was frustrating, for sure. But what makes it even more frustrating is the fact that the Eagles had not one, but two blatant penalties against Carson Wentz that weren’t called.
Former head of officiating, and current rules analyst, Dean Blandino threw in his two cents on the play confirming that the refs did miss this one on Sunday.
It’s now become apparent that in no way is Wentz going to be protected by the referees unlike some other quarterback’s are.
That’s okay and all, but he at least needs protection from his offensive line. Ever since his return, Wentz has taken far too many hits for a quarterback that’s coming off of major knee surgery.
Wentz has been back for two games now, and he has taken nine sacks already. Combine that with the five sacks that Nick Foles took during the first two weeks, and the Eagles become top-five in QBs getting sacked. So much for having the best offensive line in the league, huh?
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While we can complain about the refs all day, the fact of the matter is that the offensive line needs to pick it up. Wentz is getting destroyed far too often.
With the number of times, Doug Pederson is making Wentz drop back; there’s no way that the pass protection can break down like that on a weekly basis. That roughing the passer no-call should be a reality check for the offense. Wentz needs better protection, and he needs it as soon as possible.