Pittsburgh Steelers face NFL punishment after bold referee accusations and explosive rant

The Pittsburgh Steelers could face punishment from the NFL, and the officials were heavily criticized after their Week 8 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin and wide receiver Deontay Johnson could be in trouble in the NFL for their actions involving referees.

The Steelers lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who had a home crowd and hosted the game.
Johnson was the first to speak after becoming upset when officials gave the Steelers an offsides call (called a rare penalty) that nullified the team’s 55-yard field goal at the line of scrimmage.
After being pushed back 5 yards, his next attempt failed, costing him a point on the board.
The wide receiver was upset with his quarterback, Kenny Pickett, when the officials didn’t call a late passer harassment penalty.

When the game ended, Coach Tomlin became upset with the umpire and asked, “What happened to everybody today?” He spoke clearly. After the game, Johnson made some controversial comments.
, which implies that they were paid money to avoid sanctions.
Although there is no evidence of this.

“The refs killed us the whole game,” Johnson said.
“I was not satisfied with the referees in today’s training camp.
In the end we can’t complain about the referees.
Like coach [Mike Tomlin] said, we’re not worried about the refs.
But everyone is different.

“I didn’t like the judge today.
We would have had a good pay day today but we lost…
the ball hit us on the break. We needed it.
“They said stupid things. They should be punished for bad calls, worse, horrible calls, etc. I am very upset. They paid us to play. I don’t care what anyone says.
“They paid us to play.”

He then doubled down on his demands, saying the referee is there for the team and wants the Jaguars to win the game.
He said: “They (the Jaguars) wanted to win. They called and everything went in their favor.
They answered all the calls, but that was it. But we can’t do that.
Like I said, I’ll keep trying.
It’s ready on Thursday.”

The NFL has been quick to fine those who speak negatively about the performance of its officials, but Johnson could also be suspended after he said his team was targeted because of his remarks. The loss moves the Steelers to 4-3, while the Jaguars enter the bye week with a strong 6-2 record.