"Blow your f--king whistle": NFL fans fume at officials after DeVonta Smith goes down vs Saints
DeVonta Smith has been a standout for the Eagles since he was drafted in 2021. His flashy skills and tremendous speed have been a nuisance for the NFL defenses. However, when the Saints’ defensive tackle took matters into his own hands, fans expressed dissatisfaction with the referees' approach.
The Philadelphia Eagles secured a 15-12 victory over the New Orleans Saints at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Sunday. In this closely contested, low-scoring affair, a single tackle could make all the difference. During the fourth quarter, when the Saints lead the game 3-0 and the Eagles threatening a comeback, DT Khristian Boyd came up with a hard tackle.
Jalen Hurts threw the ball toward Smith at 1st and down. The wide receiver caught it but was unable to make progress down the field. As Smith was running backward with the ball clutched to his chest and two defenders closing in, Boyd came from behind and went straight for Smith’s head.
“DeVonta Smith hit extremely hard. This looks really bad.”
The visuals of this tackle made the fans furious and the referees officiating the game became the public enemy No. 1. Since this tackle was not even called a penalty.
“The refs are 100% responsible for that DeVonta Smith hit. Blow your fucking whistle,” one fan said.
“No flag on this either?? Wtf,” another fan said.
“HOW IN THE FUCK IS THAT NOT A PENALTY?????” one fan said.
Here are some more reactions from fans.
“Not a flag, nothing. Disgusting,” another fan said.
“That has to be an ejection. Straight shot to the head on a defenseless player,” a fan said.
“Refs should have blown that dead a while ago,” another fan said.
The effect of the hit on DeVonta Smith
After this tackle, Smith was taken out of the game and into the blue tent for concussion evaluation. A few minutes later, the Eagles announced that Smith would not be continuing anymore.
“Injury Update: WR DeVonta Smith has been downgraded to out,” Philadelphia Eagles posted on X.
Before his game was cut short, the 2020 Heisman Trophy winner had registered 79 yards on seven receptions.