Bills’ Dion Dawkins urges NFL to fine refs for making mistakes in games - “Everybody should be held accountable”
Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Dion Dawkins came up with a suggestion that could hold referees making wrong calls accountable. He shared his thoughts in his recent appearance on CBS Sports’ "Zach Gelb Show".
Fans, players, and some media members are calling out game officials for making one too many mistakes. Sometimes, these calls (or non-calls) can change a game’s complexion. Hence, Dawkins wants the referees penalized for their blunders as well.
Dion Dawkins pushes for accountability by handing out fines to NFL game officials
If NFL players are fined for breaking the rule book, Dion Dawkins argues that NFL referees should be held in the same esteem if they’re not doing a good job. The two-time Pro Bowler shared with Gelb:
“It's ridiculous. So I don't want to take no shots at the officials because they're not all bad. And there is things that go missed and some that need to be seen, and I understand it, and they're not perfect. But man, if we can get fined for little things, I just feel like everybody should be held accountable.
“You know, if they throw a flag and it's holding, and we review it, and it's not holding, they should get fined. And if Tony is offside, and he wants to appeal it, and it's not then it should be reversed or something should happen but it's just not fair.”
The seven-season NFL veteran shared his thoughts while showing a clip of him being called for holding in their Week 14 game against the Kansas City Chiefs. The alleged infraction came at 9:46 in the fourth quarter, and Buffalo incurred 10 penalty yards.
However, Gelb said it shouldn’t have been a holding call against Dion Dawkins. But instead of complaining, the offensive lineman shared a classy answer by holding the referees responsible for their judgment, especially the seemingly wrong ones.
Dawkins incurred two fines this season. The first was a $10,927 bill for unnecessary roughness during their Week 6 game versus the New York Giants. Five weeks later, he was charged the same amount for the same penalty against the New York Jets.
There are more absurd penalties than Dion Dawkins’ 2 fines
Dion Dawkins may have a point because there are penalties that could have been non-calls and vice versa. There’s the unnecessary roughness call on Breece Hall, wherein he must pay a $43.709 fine after lowering his helmet before contacting Atlanta Falcons cornerback A.J. Terrell.
Meanwhile, Tyreek Hill was fined for not wearing socks during their Week 3 game against the Denver Broncos. Huddle Up founder Joe Pompliano tweeted that in-game fines this season are already at $5 million as of Week 13, a 161-percent increase from last year.
While in-game penalties can be subject to debate, it helped Dawkins and the Bills defeat the Chiefs. Kansas City would have won via a touchdown off a Travis Kelce lateral if Kadarius Toney hadn’t lined up offsides.