Jets CB Sauce Gardner disputes Patrick Mahomes' comments on penalty: 'It was not a holding'
The New York Jets were in business with an interception in the fourth quarter against the Kansas City Chiefs. Patrick Mahomes threw it up for grabs on third-and-20, and the Jets picked it off. The Jets trailed 23-20 with plenty of time to go.
It's not a surprise anymore when officials bail out an offense with a penalty flag on a failed third down. It happens all the time, and it happened on that play. Defensive holding on Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner wiped out the interception and gave the Kansas City Chiefs a first down. The Jets never got the ball back and lost 23-20. On Monday, people spent most of their day on social media arguing about that call and a few others in the game.
No, Taylor Swift isn't rigging the NFL. But Gardner took to social media to break down exactly what happened on the play and why it shouldn't have been a penalty. That will give new life to the debate.
Gardner was replying to an interview with Mahomes in which the Chiefs quarterback said "at the end of the day, you get your hands around a guy's neck like 15 yards downfield, they're going to call something." Mahomes said once he saw that, he just threw the pass up knowing a flag would come. Gardner shot back at Mahomes' assessment of the play.
Since we are commenting, let me say it from my perspective😂 For starters, this was around 5-7 yds from the LOS... not 15. 2. I extended my arms and he made the choice to lean on me with all of his weight which caused my hand to slide to the back of his pad; not his neck😂 I did… https://t.co/tVbV6kfKTI pic.twitter.com/eA15AbfWTK
— SAUCE GARDNER (@iamSauceGardner) October 2, 2023
Here's the full text of Gardner's message:
"Since we are commenting, let me say it from my perspective ... For starters, this was around 5-7 yds from the LOS... not 15. 2. I extended my arms and he made the choice to lean on me with all of his weight which caused my hand to slide to the back of his pad; not his neck ... I did not grab him, I actually made a conscious effort to remove my right arm as you can see in the video ... he then tried to swim with his right hand and I pushed his arm down with my left hand lmaoo.. There yall have it. It was not a holding or illegal contact. Ohh my fault, it was holding bc he threw the flag."
That's about as detailed an explanation of a penalty as you'll ever find from a player. The NFL probably won't be too thrilled Gardner disputed the call in such a public manner. The laughing emojis probably won't take the edge off.
The Jets were upset, and that's not surprising. It was a game-changing call and it wasn't an egregious penalty, if it was one at all. Jets coach Robert Saleh was so upset he ended up taking a 15-yard penalty a few minutes later as he continued to argue with the officials.
It's a pretty normal Monday during the NFL season for fans to be complaining about an officiating call. It's a little more unusual for a player to give a detailed description on why that call was wrong.
