What Chiefs, Vikings said about overturned late flag: ‘I’ve got to be careful here’
Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid was adamant that officials were correct in picking up a potential flag on L’Jarius Sneed late in KC’s 27-20 road victory Sunday.
Minnesota coach Kevin O’Connell, meanwhile, chose his words carefully, saying he disagreed with what the officials eventually did.
The play was a critical one. Minnesota faced a fourth-and-12 from the KC 24 with 4:54 left while trailing 27-20. Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnolo sent a blitz, and quarterback Kirk Cousins managed to loft a pass halfway through the end zone.
Sneed was covering receiver Jordan Addison near the sideline when an official threw a flag that seemed like it was going to be defensive pass interference.
After discussion, however, the officials ruled no flag on the play, turning the ball over to the Chiefs.
When asked about the defensive play afterward, Reid said he didn’t see anything wrong with Sneed’s actions, saying he was “just running with” Addison and “wasn’t grabbing him or pushing him or anything.”
“The ball was ... obviously it wasn’t catchable. He did a nice job, I thought, shadowing him,” Reid said of Sneed. “I thought it was a good call. I think picking the flag up was probably the right thing to do.”
O’Connell had a different opinion when speaking with former Vikings linebacker Ben Leber in a postgame interview on KFAN Sports Radio. The Vikings coach was asked what explanation he received from officials afterward.
“I’ve got to be careful here, Ben,” O’Connell told Leber. “You would’ve loved to maybe have a chance to make a play on the football, obviously.
“When teams are bringing all-out pressure in those moments, and also, defending the pass the way it was defended, I was not surprised when the penalty got thrown. And then was very surprised when the penalty got picked up.”
Sneed said because it was fourth and long, he gave Addison some extra cushion. He was asked if he believed the flag should have been picked up.
“Of course,” Sneed said, “because I got my head back (around).”
It wasn’t the only controversial part of the sequence.
As the officials huddled to discuss the call, Sneed removed his helmet and approached them to dispute their initial ruling. The CBS TV broadcast showed one referee telling Sneed to put his helmet back on.
Sneed did, and he was not given a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. CBS rules analyst Gene Steratore said on the broadcast that Sneed should’ve been given a penalty for that action, but because it happened after the fourth-down play, the mark-off would’ve taken place after the Chiefs received possession; KC, then, would’ve lost the yardage but still had a first-and-10 deep in its own territory.
O’Connell told Leber he definitely noticed Sneed with his helmet off.
“For whatever reason, the dialogue that took place there for something that is an illegal action was not in that moment,” O’Connell told Leber. “And we’ve got to try to overcome it as a football team. Like I said, I’m going to be careful on this one. I’m just disappointed for our guys. Loved our energy and our ‘competes’ today against the team that won the Lombardi Trophy last year.”
Sneed said after the game that he knew that removing his headgear on the field of play was a penalty.
“I was caught up in the moment,” Sneed said. “I just told them that I’d put it back on. They told me to put it back on; I put it back on.”
It’s the second straight week that the Chiefs have been on the right side of a call (or no-call) late.
Last week against the Jets, the Chiefs picked up a first down on a third-and-20 when New York cornerback Sauce Gardner was called for a hold on receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling. That flag negated a Michael Carter II interception.
The Chiefs eventually ran out the clock on that same possession in a 23-20 win.
Steratore, during the CBS broadcast Sunday, said he agreed with the officials’ decision to pick up the pass-interference flag on Sneed.
Reid, meanwhile, was pleased with the process that led to the call.
“They communicated, which, that’s all you ask for,” Reid said of the officials. “They’re human beings, so they’re working on it there.”
This story was originally published October 8, 2023 at 9:32 PM.
