The Los Angeles Chargers jumped out to a huge lead against the Cleveland Browns in the first half on Sunday, and they got some serious help from the officials on one of their scoring plays.
With less than a minute remaining in the second quarter, Philip Rivers threw a beautiful 29-yard touchdown pass that Tyrell Williams made a great play on. However, the play should have been whistled dead, as offensive lineman Russell Okung clearly jumped before the ball was snapped.
This somehow wasn’t a false start on what turned out to be a Chargers TD pic.twitter.com/C96wyxXZxR
— Adam Stites (@AdamStites_) October 14, 2018
The officials inexplicably missed that Okung got out of his stance early, and the play was not reviewable. To make matters worse, the missed call occurred on third down. Rather than being faced with 3rd-and-12, the Chargers scored a touchdown that never should have counted.
We’ve grown accustomed to seeing officials blow calls on plays like this, but it’s rare that a team gets away with a false start. The Browns will have every right to be furious about that.
