Earl Thomas: Refs tried to make Monday night game close for TV

The Seattle Seahawks were called for 13 penalties that totaled 90 yards during their win over the Washington Redskins on Monday night. Percy Harvin had three touchdowns called back in the game, sending his fantasy football owners to the brink of insanity. Seahawks safety Earl Thomas believes the officials were intentionally trying to keep the game competitive.

“I just think it’s Monday Night Football, you know the fans are watching, and everybody wants to see a good game, so they’re gonna try to make it as close as possible,” Thomas told reporters, according to USA Today Sports. “It’s a business.”

And you know those fantasy owners we mentioned? It turns out Harvin was one of them.

“Percy Harvin — my little brother, I know he’s pissed off because we were going at it at in a fantasy league,” Thomas said. “I had Russell Wilson, and he had Percy Harvin, and they called all the touchdowns back, so I know he’s pretty upset.”

It’s hard to say if the refs had any motivation beyond simply calling what they saw. Offensive lineman James Carpenter committed two of the penalties that negated Harvin’s touchdowns, and Pete Carroll referred to the second one — an unnecessary roughness penalty — as an “outrageous foul.”

One thing we do know is that all of the Thursday night games have been blowouts to this point, and the league has been criticized for poor scheduling. Given that Monday night games are also nationally televised, I’m sure the NFL is hoping the games are a bit more exciting. That doesn’t mean the officials were throwing their flags accordingly, but it is definitely food for thought.

H/T Washington Post