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The Cincinnati Bengals' dismal start to the 2024 season continued, as they lost 38-33 to the Washington Commanders at Paul Brown Stadium on Monday night and fell to 0-3. Despite Joe Burrow and the offense's best efforts, they couldn't overcome their defensive frailties, which cost them heavily.
However, the Bengals had more reasons to be incensed at the referees after they missed what seemed like an obvious defensive pass interference call on a two-point attempt.
Safety Jeremy Chinn hooked wide receiver Tee Higgins' arm and stopped him from catching a perfect pass from Burrow that would've cut the Bengals' lead to three. However, the referees let the Commanders off the hook, much to the frustration of their fans, who voiced their frustration on social media:
Retired quarterback Robert Griffin III was rooting for the Commanders to win but agreed with fans that the referees missed an obvious defensive pass interference call:
Fans in the replies section of his post also backed his take:
"Once again very bad missed call…can’t keep happening," wrote @cczar93.
"The inconsistency in officiating is destroying the product," @oupioneer opined.
"This changes the game to a FG differential. Brutal missed calls this past week. Somethings gotta give," @FaysolK said.
For the second straight week, a pass interference call in a critical moment went against the Bengals.
Bengals' bad fortune with DPI continues
In their Week 2 clash against the Kansas City Chiefs, Cincinnati had seemingly pulled off an upset win over the reigning Super Bowl champions after Patrick Mahomes threw an incompletion on 4th-and-16 in the game's dying moments.
However, rookie Daijahn Anthony crashed into wide receiver Rashee Rice a second too early and was flagged for defensive pass interference to not only give the Chiefs the first down but also put them in field goal range.
They ran the clock down to four seconds before trotting out kicker Harrison Butker to kick the walk-off field goal from 51 yards out. The Bengals had no reason to complain about that call, but they are well within their rights to question why Chinn wasn't flagged for hooking Higgins' arm well before the ball reached the wide receiver.
