The Tampa Bay Buccaneers escaped with a 21-15 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 5 of the 2022 NFL season.
Quarterback Tom Brady had an impressive performance with 35 completions for 351 yards and a touchdown.
However, that roughing the passer penalty called on Grady Jarrett against him became the focal point of the post-game conversations.
It became such a hot topic that a game official had to elaborate on the violation.
Referee Jerome Boger told pool reporter @gregauman that the roughing the passer penalty on #Falcons DT Grady Jarrett was for “unnecessarily throwing (Tom Brady) to the ground.” pic.twitter.com/rqxyNzjd6I
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) October 9, 2022
NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero tweeted, “Referee Jerome Boger told pool reporter @gregauman that the roughing the passer penalty on #Falcons DT Grady Jarrett was for ‘unnecessarily throwing (Tom Brady) to the ground.'”
Pelissero added, “From Rule 12, Article 11 (b): ‘When tackling a passer who is in a defenseless posture (e.g., during or just after throwing a pass), a defensive player must not unnecessarily or violently throw him down …’ Obviously, there is room to disagree on whether that applies here.”
He also shared an exchange between reporter Greg Auman of The Athletic and Referee Jerome Boger.
Auman asked, “There was a third down penalty where the Falcons had a roughing the passer called after sacking Tom Brady that extended the drive. Just looking for clarification on what constituted that roughing the passer?”
Boger answered, “What I had was the defender grabbed the quarterback while he was still in the pocket, and unnecessarily throwing him to the ground. That is what I was making my decision based upon.”
The Penalty Shifted The Momentum For Tampa Bay
Without that penalty, the Falcons would have forced the Buccaneers to a three-and-out with three minutes left in the game.
That’s enough time to complete a touchdown drive that could have given Atlanta the lead and possibly the victory.
Instead, that infraction gave the Buccaneers a first down.
A five-yard run by Leonard Fournette and a nine-yard catch by Mike Evans ended the game, 21-15.
The Buccaneers will try to start another winning streak by defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 6.
NEXT: Antonio Brown Takes Disgusting Shot At Tom Brady