Patriots had 61-yard TD taken away by a horrible penalty call
The New England Patriots had a long touchdown taken off the board following a highly controversial call during their Week 6 game against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
Patriots quarterback Drake Maye threw a 61-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver DeMario Douglas to give New England what should have been a 13-6 lead late in the first quarter at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La. A late flag was thrown, however, and the Patriots were called for offensive pass interference. The touchdown came off the board and New England was backed up 10 yards instead.
The flag came so late that the Patriots’ offense had already celebrated and left the field. There was then some confusion while the officiating crew was announcing the call, which went against Stefon Diggs.
Diggs was nowhere near where the area where Douglas caught the ball. Diggs and defensive back Kool-Aid McKinstry got slightly tangled up on the play, but there was nothing that should have amounted to a penalty.
It was almost like an official threw the flag, didn’t know why and then chose a random player to penalize. CBS play-by-play announcer Spero Dedes and color analyst Adam Archuleta tried to make sense of the call, but it didn’t seem like Diggs or any other Patriots player committed pass interference.
The Patriots had 3rd-and-12 following the penalty on Diggs. New Orleans was called for defensive pass interference on the very next play, which many felt was a make-up call. The Saints were then called for defensive holding two plays after that. New England wound up scoring a touchdown on the drive.
The entire sequence was embarrassing for the officiating crew. The NFL will undoubtedly take a close look at the offensive pass interference call and try to figure out what happened.
Commanders protect Jayden Daniels in latest NFL mock draft
The Washington Commanders are committing to building in the trenches and they proved that this offseason.
The Commanders traded for former All-Pro tackle Laremy Tunsil and selected Josh Conerly Jr. out of Oregon in the first round of the NFL Draft. CBS Sports writer Ryan Wilson thinks the Commanders will continue to add to the offensive line in the 2026 draft, taking Utah offensive tackle Caleb Lomu with the No. 24 overall pick.
"Only his second year as the starting LT at Utah, but there was a reason the Utes felt comfortable enough moving Spencer Fano to the right side. Lomu has a long frame and plays with surprisingly good footwork. Not to oversell it, but if I squint, I see shades of Joe Alt because of the length and athleticism," Wilson wrote.
Lomu could build Commanders offensive line
Lomu has a lot of potential and this year will be big for him to see how well he can perform. If he plays like he did in 2024, there's a case to be made for Lomu to be taken in the first round.
The Commanders would be an interesting fit for Lomu, but possibly a smart one. The Commanders have Tunsil at left tackle signed on until the 2026 season. Washington could assess Tunsil's performance in his first year with the team as a 31-year-old. If he performs well, Lomu could be an understudy for a year and replace Tunsil once he becomes a free agent.
There's also a world where Tunsil's age begins to show and he isn't the answer the Commanders had hoped for. If this is the scenario that plays out, Lomu could be a plug-and-play prospect. He could also compete with Conerly, this year's first-round prospect, for the vacated left tackle role.
