Offensive flags pile up
Gronk & Co. have interference problem
FOXBORO — The Patriots have shot themselves in the foot a bit too often with drive-killing offensive pass interference penalties. During the past four games, in fact, they’ve been nailed for the dreaded OPI a whopping six times.
That undesirable spurt has them tied with the Cleveland Browns for the most infractions in that category. For a little perspective, eight teams have yet to be called for the penalty, and the NFL is averaging 1.66 OPI calls per team.
Let’s just say it’s not the type of trend Bill Belichick is looking for. The penalties have rubbed out 87 yards in completions. Add on 60 yards for the penalties, and it spells a 147-yard nightmare in Belichick’s book. And the players know it. “We definitely have to clean it up since it’s being called. We’re doing something wrong so we have to clean that up,” wideout Brandin Cooks, who’s drawn one OPI flag this season, told the Herald yesterday. “It’s not like we’re being coached to do it. It’s not like we’re practicing it. The game gets going fast. It’s something we have to be aware of.”
During Sunday night’s 23-7 win over the Falcons, Rob Gronkowski had a 40yard completion nullified when he was flagged for OPI. It was the second time he was hit with that penalty this season.
But he’s not alone. Danny Amendola has also been nailed twice. Chris Hogan and Cooks were also caught on pick plays.
So what gives? Do the Patriots now have a reputation, prompting officials to specifically look for them shoving off defenders? Is Gronk, who was also flagged five times for OPI in 2015, in particular a marked man?
Former NFL officiating supervisor Jim Daopoulos, now a rules analyst for ESPN, doesn’t think a reputation for any particular penalty sways officials.
Officials, he said, “go in pretty open-minded” to game assignments.
“Officials are so neutral about this,” he went on. “If officials are getting ready to work the Patriots game with Atlanta, they’re watching the film. They’re watching how the players play. They’re not saying this player does this all the time. They’re not going to go into a game with a preconceived notion that ‘Hey, I gotta keep an eye on (Malcolm) Butler for this, or I gotta keep an eye on (Tom) Brady.’
“It doesn’t work like that. They have a job to do, and they’re graded on how they do in that game. So they try to make the calls correctly.”
Gronkowski has voiced frustration over a lack of consistency with the calls. A few weeks ago, he claimed he’s been allowed to slap off a defender’s hands one week, then the next, it’s pass interference.
“If the consistency was there 100 percent, then I’d be cool whatever it is. But one week we’re told we can play (and) it really isn’t going to be called,” the Patriots tight end said. “They can hold and you can slap off their hands and then the next week it’s if you touch the guy it’s a PI. I just wish I knew the consistency so then I can base my game off that in practice and be prepared for the game and know the rules going in.”
To Gronk’s point, Daopoulos said officials attempt to be consistent week to week.
“Are some more lenient than others? Certainly that happens, but Gronk needs to understand that all his moves and maneuvers are also not consistent,” Daopoulos said. “He knows what is legal and when he pushes the envelope some times he will get called. As I have mentioned, consistency is what officials strive for, although it doesn’t always happen.”
On the play he was flagged against the Falcons, Gronk used the full extension of his hand to push back linebacker Duke Riley before hauling in the long pass from Brady, so the proper call was made. The Patriots did not score on that drive. Of the six times they’ve been called for OPI, they have still managed to score two touchdowns in spite of being pushed back 10 yards for the penalty.
“The players know the rules. They know what they can get away with. Players try to push the envelope a little bit,” Daopoulos went on. “Sometimes they get caught, sometimes they don’t, but they know the rules. They’re coached by Bill Belichick, so they know the rules.”
The Pats clearly understand the rules for the pick play, as they’re legally allowed to pick somebody within 1 yard of the line of scrimmage. One such penalty was reversed in the Saints game.
Cooks, however, agreed they do try to be aggressive, sometimes a little too aggressive. He got caught during the Jets game down by the goal line setting an illegal pick as he wiped out safety Marcus Maye, making a path for Hogan.
“We’re playing aggressive, and sometimes things happen,” Cooks said. “But that is something we have to clean up. There’s no excuse for it.”