Tennessee Titans special teams coordinator John Fassel told reporters that the NFL acknowledged that special teams made two officiating errors during the Titans’ Nov. 30 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars that directly and indirectly contributed to the Titans’ scoring decline.
The Titans lost 25-3 to the Jaguars in a game where the special teams operations ended up being one of the stories of the game. Rookie Titans return specialist Chimel Decker fumbled the opening kickoff, a rough punter penalty turned a Jaguars three-and-out into a 15-play touchdown, and several tough blocks and harsh words turned into an all-out fight that resulted in four personal fouls and an ejection.
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Speaking to reporters two days later, Fassel said he thought referee Brad Allen and his staff handled the odd moments in the game well and understood why certain calls were made. He wasn’t thrilled with the ruling that ejected safety Mike Brown after the altercation; Fassel said replays showing Brown grabbing a Jacksonville player’s facemask and letting go, causing the player’s head to fall to the ground, could have been misinterpreted as a push that could have triggered an ejection.
After Titans running back Julius Chestnut claimed Jacksonville punter Logan Cook threatened to kill him on the field, Fassel issued a sweeping rebuke, saying players across the league would be better off using less personal or threatening language during games.
Among all these highlights, there are two important games that get the spotlight. Fassel and the Titans can submit up to 10 special teams plays per week to the NFL office for review and clarification of rulings. This week, Fassel said the league acknowledged mistakes were made in two instances:
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Titans outside linebacker Arden Key was flagged for infringing on the Jaguars’ extra point, giving Jacksonville the opportunity to attempt a 2-and-goal from the 1-yard line. Further review revealed that Jacksonville’s long kicker bent his elbow and turned the tip of the ball down before the snap, which constituted sufficient movement to constitute an illegal kickoff penalty that should have resulted in a return to Jacksonville. The Jaguars could have scored one less point if the free throw was correct, or two less if the extra point was missed.
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Early in the fourth quarter, Cook intercepted Dyke on a punt return, raised his leg and hit Dyke in the chest. No flag was raised, but the league office acknowledged that Cook should have been called for a tripping penalty. If those 15 yards were evaluated, the Titans would have received the ball at the 23-yard line outside of Jacksonville’s field goal range instead of the 38-yard line.
The Titans were down 22 points when the missed trip incident occurred. Take away the extra points generated by Key’s offense and this was still a three-touchdown game. With those 15 yards of field position, the Titans might be able to start a comeback, but a complete turnaround is unlikely.
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Still, Fassel’s motivation upon hearing these rulings wasn’t to make excuses for the Titans’ loss.
“When I normally report them, I don’t report them because I’m trying to be right,” Fassel said. “I usually give them to myself and our players to let them understand the thought process behind the call. The tripping was more like, ‘That was a tripping, right?’ They said, ‘Yeah, that was a tripping.’ “With the encroachment, it’s more about the limitations of how much movement the ball can have before it’s considered legal or illegal. A lot of that has to do with the NFL letting us know from that perspective.”
Nick Suss is a Tennessee Titans staff writer. Contact Nick: nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on X @Nixus. subscription Talking Titan Newsletter Updates delivered straight to your inbox.
This article originally appeared in The Nashville Tennessean: Titans battle against Jaguars, threats and NFL admitting mistakes
