Officiating crew comments on that now-infamous flag on Mike Hilton

By now, Cincinnati Bengals fans know all about the universally-disliked penalty flag thrown on cornerback Mike Hilton at a crucial moment during Sunday’s loss to the New York Jets.

And now we have comments from the officiating crew itself on the topic.

In a pool report after the game, official Craig Wrolstad fielded questions and this naturally came up. He said the expected, saying that Hilton lowered his head to initiate contact, which deserved a flag.

Asked whether the call might have been on the offense instead given the circumstances, Wrolstad said “I don’t think there was any discussion about the offense,” according to The Athletic’s Jay Morrison.

Asked how a defender can avoid that call or what Hilton could have done better, Wrolstad said the following:

“I’m not here to verse you on how to tackle properly, but the rule is that you cannot lower your head to initiate contact on a player with your helmet. So, he can hit him with his shoulder, I suppose.” 

Asked if it was a clear call and if there was any conversation or debate about it, Wrolstad said it was clear and the conversation was short.

So there’s that. It’s pretty clear to even a casual observer the crew got it wrong in some fashion. That, or the rule isn’t good enough. Either way, based on officiating from around the NFL each week, it’s clear the league needs to do more to help its officials. There’s zero excuse for a game-changing play (and maybe a season-altering one) to come down to a bad call at a key moment like this.

The pool report with referee Craig Wrolstad’s comments about the penalty called on Mike Hilton. pic.twitter.com/X6YCNKZgKL

— Jay Morrison (@JayMorrisonATH) October 31, 2021