The officiating during Thursday night’s game between the Packers and Bears was questionable, to say the least. Multiple calls, going against both teams, left fans and analysts scratching their head.
There was one call, however, that stuck with Packers head coach Mike McCarthy, and it came before the teams even went to the locker room for halftime. Following the Bears 17-13 win, McCarthy was critical of an offensive pass interference call against James Jones deep in Bears territory.
From PackersNews.com
The one play on Randall’s (catch) is just a flat poor call, McCarthy said. He missed the call. You can shake that any way you want. They’re looking for it.
Had the penalty not been called, the Packers would have had a third-and-goal on the one yard line. Instead, the Packers were moved back 10 yards and eventually forced to kick a field goal.
McCarthy again took issue with the officiating on a similar play later in the game. This time, after contact between a Bears defensive back and Green Bay wide receiver, no flag was thrown and the play resulted in a Bears interception.
For as critical of the officiating as McCarthy was, the Packers did have at least one big moment thanks to a seemingly blown call. During their first drive of the game, Aaron Rodgers tried to go deep against Tracy Porter. The Bears corner made the interception but had it waved off after a suspect pass interference call.
Regardless of whether any of the calls were blown or not, the Bears left Green Bay with a much needed victory. The win moves them a big step closer to the playoff race.
