Did officials acknowledge to Josh Allen that they blew a call in the end zone?
With Buffalo leading early in the third quarter of Sunday’s wild-card game against the Denver Broncos, the Bills ran a pass play on third-and goal while holding a 10-7 lead. Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II grabbed a hold of Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid and spun him around in the back of the end zone.
Allen couldn’t find an open receiver, and ultimately took a sack on the play. He immediately stood up and protested the no-call on Surtain in the end zone.
A correct holding call would have given the Bills first-and-goal inside the Denver 5-yard line. Instead, the Bills settled for a field goal to extend their lead to 13-7.
After the play, official Bill Vinovich walked to the Bills sideline to chat with Allen as Allen sat on the bench. It’s not clear what Vinovich said, but he patted his own chest as if pointing to himself, prompting a friendly pat on the shoulder from Allen.
Did Vinovich acknowledge that they blew the call? Did he apologize? Whatever he said appeared to satisfy Allen — at least as much as he could have been satisfied after being denied a fair shot at a touchdown.
Fortunately for the Bills, it didn’t prove too costly. They held the Broncos to a three-and-out on Denver’s next possession, then got their touchdown on a wild fourth-and-1 conversion on their ensuing possession to increase their lead to 21-7.
