NFL Fans Crushed Refs for Not Throwing Flag on Play That Injured Steelers QB Kenny Pickett

The starting quarterback was ruled out for the remainder of Sunday’s game vs. the Jaguars.
NFL Fans Crushed Refs for Not Throwing Flag on Play That Injured Steelers QB Kenny Pickett
NFL Fans Crushed Refs for Not Throwing Flag on Play That Injured Steelers QB Kenny Pickett /

Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett was ruled out of Sunday’s game vs. Jaguars after suffering a rib injury right before halftime. 

The biggest storyline out of this situation isn’t even the fact that Pickett missed the rest of the game. Instead, fans are talking more about how the officials didn’t call roughing the passer on the play.

Jaguars defensive lineman Adam Gotsis tackled Pickett and brought him down hard to the ground during the play. The quarterback struggled to get back up, then was taken off the field while holding his rib area. He left the game immediately and did not return with the team to start the second half.

Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett is attended to on the field after getting hit.
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett is tended to after taking a hit against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the second quarter at Acrisure Stadium :: Philip G. Pavely/USA TODAY Sports

What made some fans upset is that Steelers safety Keanu Neal was flagged earlier in the game for roughing the passer against Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, and it didn’t appear as “rough” as Gotsis’s tackle.

Check out some of the social media reaction to this play.


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Madison Williams
MADISON WILLIAMS

Madison Williams is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated, where she specializes in tennis but covers a wide range of sports from a national perspective. Before joining SI in 2022, Williams worked at The Sporting News. Having graduated from Augustana College, she completed a master’s in sports media at Northwestern University. She is a dog mom and an avid reader.