'We couldn't see it': Refs claim view of egregious facemask was blocked

The Vikings never got a chance to score a tying touchdown late after the missed call.
Multiple views of the uncalled facemask on Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold during their game against the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.
Multiple views of the uncalled facemask on Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold during their game against the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif. / Broadcast screenshot
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In one of the biggest moments of the game, the officials missed a blatant facemask on Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold, ultimately resulting in a Vikings' 30-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams Thursday night in Inglewood, Calif.

Trailing 28-20, the Vikings had one last chance to send the game into overtime. Darnold held on to the ball for too long and got sacked by Byron Young, but Young clearly grabbed Darnold's facemask as he took him down. No flags flew on the field, and the play resulted in two points and the ball for the Rams, who kneeled it out the rest of the way to victory.

In the pool report after the game, referee Tra Blake said none of the officials had a view of the facemask.

"The quarterback was facing the opposite direction from me, so I did not have a good look at it," Blake said. "I did not have a look, and I did not see the facemask being pulled, obviously. The umpire had players between him and the quarterback, so he did not get a look at it. He was blocked out as well. So that was the thing, we did not see it so we couldn't call it.

"We couldn't see it."

The play is not reviewable, Blake said.

"On the field we definitely did discuss it because they did bring up a concern. We discussed it as a crew, but we weren't able to see it on the field so we weren't able to make that call," he said.


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Nolan O'Hara
NOLAN O'HARA

Nolan O'Hara covers all things Minnesota sports, primarily the Timberwolves, for Bring Me The News and Sports Illustrated's On SI network. He previously worked as a copy editor at the St. Paul Pioneer Press and is a graduate of the University of Minnesota's Hubbard School of Journalism. His work has appeared in the Pioneer Press, Ratchet & Wrench magazine, the Minnesota Daily and a number of local newspapers in Minnesota, among other publications.