The Tennessee Titans fell to 2-8 this season as they absorbed a 23-13 home defeat to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 11. However, head coach Brian Callahan believes his team deserved a better fate in their latest game. Callahan thinks his team was hurt badly by an officials' call that turned the game in the Vikings' favor.
The call in question came in the second quarter with the Vikings leading by a 7-3 margin. Minnesota took the ball at its own 11-yard line and went on a 16-play drive. On 4th-and-goal from the Tennessee 1-yard line, Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold threw to wide receiver Jordan Addison. The second-year receiver appeared to have a good chance to catch.
However, Tennessee defensive back Mike Brown delivered a hard shoulder to Addison's chest an instant after the ball arrived. The receiver was unable to make the catch. However, instead of the Titans taking over possession at that point, a penalty flag for unnecessary roughness was called. The Vikings were allowed to continue the possession and Darnold scored from one yard out on the next play.
Callahan was irate about the call, and he berated officials on the sidelines after the play. When he continued his verbal barrage and walked onto the field, officials threw another flag for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Callahan explains that bad calls have been a problem throughout the NFL
When he was voicing his displeasure at the officials, there was little back and forth discussion about the call. “They (the officials) just listen,” Callahan said. “I was really frustrated at the moment. There seem to be a lot of big plays and critical plays in games that get taken away by officiating and that's unfortunate.”
While Callahan and the Titans were clearly frustrated, the streaking Vikings were able to take advantage of the call and win their third game in a row. The Vikings improved their record to 8-2, and they are 1 game behind the first-place Detroit Lions in the NFC North.
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Darnold bounced back from two subpar efforts in wins over the Indianapolis Colts and Jacksonville Jaguars by completing 20 of 32 passes for 246 yards with 2 touchdowns and no interceptions. All-Pro wide receiver Justin Jefferson caught 6 passes for 81 yards while Addison had 3 receptions for 61 yards, including a 47-yard TD catch. Running back Cam Akers caught the other Darnold touchdown pass, a three-yarder in the third quarter that gave the Vikings a 23-10 lead at the time.
Titans quarterback Will Levis completed 17 of 31 passes for 295 yards that included 1 TD and 1 interception. The touchdown was a spectacular 98-yard catch and run by Nick Westbrook-Ikhine in the third quarter. It was the longest pass play in the NFL this season.
