« This is Unforgivable”: Referee Shawn Hochuli and Crew Called Out Over Glaring Clock Management Mistake in Saints vs. Commanders Clash

The Washington Commanders (9-5) escaped with a 20-19 victory over the New Orleans Saints (5-9) on Sunday afternoon. Washington secured their win by stopping New Orleans’ game-winning two-point conversion attempt on the final play of regulation.

Nobody can deny the play was thrilling in nature. However, it shouldn’t have happened. Before the Saints scored the touchdown that set up their possible win, referee Shawn Hochuli’s crew made an egregious error.

They incorrectly stopped the clock for a brief stretch after a New Orleans’ fourth-down conversion with less than 10 seconds left in the game. Had the clock run continuously, time would have expired.

Hochuli, the head referee of the contest, was asked about the critical incident postgame. He told reporter Luke Jones his crew “mistakenly stopped the clock.” Hochuli also said the situation “[was not] reviewable”, but would not admit if he recognized the hiccup in the moment.

Analyst Warren Sharp didn’t mince words when discussing Hochuli’s crew, calling the mistake “unforgivable” and “unbelievable.”

Fans immediately pointed to the NFL’s sportsbook connections as a reason for the whole end-of-game sequence transpiring. According to Action Network, 77% of public bets on the game were backing the Commanders. A Saints victory, presumably, would have been a better outcome for sportsbooks.

Gambling ads are some of the most pervasive in sports these days. There’s no denying the NFL, other sports leagues, and sports outlets push those services onto viewers.

Errors like these make people doubt the legitimacy of the NFL’s product. Sooner than later, they need to hire referees full-time and establish a higher level of consistency both crew-to-crew and week-to-week.