GLENDALE, ARIZONA – AUGUST 25: Wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins #10 of the Arizona Cardinals runs with the football after a reception during a NFL team training camp at State Farm Stadium on August 25, 2020 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
DeAndre Hopkins questioned the officiating in the Cardinals loss to the Patriots.
Hopkins went on to delete the tweet, but that’s why God invented screenshots. The Cardinals received a small dose of reality on the road in New England, where Bill Belichick was awaiting them to put the clamps on Kyler Murray and Arizona’s high-powered offense. Kliff Kingsbury had few answers for the Pats defensive attack, and adjustments at halftime did not work to their advantage.
An unnecessary roughness penalty on Cardinals rookie Isaiah Simmons set up the Patriots game-winning field goal on their final drive of the game. Simmons, a rookie out of Clemson, made helmet-to-helmet contact with Newton near the sideline, sending him sprawling towards the bench in the process.
Sounds like a penalty. Looks like a penalty. It was a penalty. Hopkins didn’t think so, and made his feelings known on Twitter, at least for a few brief moments.
We’ll agree to disagree with Hopkins.
Hopkins is in the wrong here, and so is Simmons
Simmons made helmet-to-helmet contact, and also hit Newton far too close to the sideline for comfort. Per the NFL rulebook, that’s enough to throw the flag, especially in a late-game situation. The best NFL officials rule with consistency; as in they don’t call the game any differently in the final two minutes of the game. These officials did just that.
This was a crushing loss for the Cardinals, hence the emotion after the fact. They sit at 6-5 on the season, and now must fight for a Wild Card spot after sitting pretty at the top of the NFC West just a few short weeks ago.
Murray and the Cards have promise, but Belichick hit them with a dose of reality.