A replacement referee got caught in the middle of a scuffle between members of the Denver Broncos and Atlanta Falcons on Monday night and lost his hat after he was inadvertently struck in the face.
Following a disputed fumble recovery, more than 20 players were involved in a brief altercation that featured the usual on-field extracurriculars. In the middle of the scrum, Falcons defensive end Ray Edwards was twisted around while engaged with Broncos defensive tackle Kevin Vickerson. Edwards tried to shove Vickerson but was blocked by the referee getting in the middle of the fight. Vickerson responded with a shove of his own. Denver teammate Orlando Franklin saw the incident and stepped in, pushing his open right palm toward Edwards' face. As he did, another Broncos player made contact with the ref, whose hat flew off due to the force.
In the yellow circle in the picture above, the ref's face is above Franklin's outstretched hand. Another angle showed Franklin didn't make direct contact with the ref; another Broncos player was pushed into him as Franklin punched.
As in the Ravens-Eagles and Redskins-Rams games on Sunday, officials let players in Monday night's contest get chippy early and failed to establish control. Fighting is a natural byproduct of a system with no repercussions. Players have no fear, like kids acting out when there's a substitute teacher.
Neither Franklin nor any other Bronco was penalized on the play. Only the Falcons' Edwards was flagged.
"We also have a dead-ball personal foul," the ref announced after retrieving his hat. "No. 93, red."
Many on Twitter mocked the ref for his use of "red" rather than "Atlanta" or "the Falcons." I choose to look at that glass as half-full: At least he got the color right.
About Reid and Mike
Reid Cherner has been with USA TODAY since 1982 and written Game On! since March 2008.
He has covered everything from high schools to horse racing to the college and the pros. The only thing he likes more than his own voice is the sound of readers telling him when he's right and wrong.
Michael Hiestand has covered sports media and marketing for USA TODAY, tackling the sports biz ranging from what's behind mega-events such as the Olympics and Super Bowl to the sometimes-hidden numbers behind the sports world's bottom line.
