Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Diontae Johnson had some withering criticism of the officiating during the team’s loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.
The Steelers were on the wrong end of multiple odd decisions by the officiating crew in Sunday’s 20-10 loss to Jacksonville, including a bizarre offsides on a Pittsburgh field goal attempt. That all prompted Johnson to eviscerate the referees after the game, openly accusing them of wanting the Jaguars to win.
Diontae Johnson blasted the refs. Didn’t understand the offsides on the field goal. Didn’t understand the differing roughing the passer calls. Stated it simply:
“The refs wanted them to win.”
— Nick Farabaugh (@FarabaughFB) October 29, 2023
“The refs wanted them to win,” Johnson said in response to the controversies.
The Steelers were victims of a very bizarre roughing the passer call in the first half. Just before halftime, a 55-yard Chris Boswell field goal was nullified by an offsides call that was questioned by many, including FOX NFL rules analyst Mike Pereira.
In Pittsburgh, offside on the offensive guard? Officials are told to call that if a lineman has his head in the neutral zone on the short yardage push plays, not on field goal attempts.
— Mike Pereira (@MikePereira) October 29, 2023
The loss was a disappointing one for the Steelers, who fell to 4-3 and lost their starting quarterback to injury. A poor officiating performance was never going to help their mood, but it might get Johnson fined in this case.
