(Audacy) The NFL on Wednesday released a video explaining why the controversial taunting call on Chicago linebacker Cassius Marsh late in the Bears' 29-27 loss to the Steelers on Monday night was in fact the right call.
In a nearly two-minute-long video released on Twitter, NFL senior vice president Perry Fewell first highlighted a few missed calls during the Rams-Titans game until he went spoke about the controversial call in the Bears-Steelers game.
"In Chicago vs. Pittsburgh, the Bears number 59 (Cassius Marsh) is penalized for taunting, Fewell said. "He takes several steps towards the Pittsburgh bench, posturing towards their sidelines. Taunting is a point of emphasis to promote sportsmanship and respect for the opponent. This was recommended by the competition committee and coaches."
There were a couple controversial penalties that really hurt the Bears in their loss to the Steelers. One came in the third quarter when rookie quarterback Justin Fields' one-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jimmy Graham was nullified by a low-block penalty whistled on guard James Daniels. It appeared Daniels both whiffed on his contact on the Steelers defender and was also legally within the tackle box. The Bears settled for a field goal on the drive.
Then with just less than four minutes left in the fourth quarter, Marsh was whistled for a taunting penalty on a third-down sack of Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. That gave the Steelers a chance to continue the drive and hit a field goal, stretching their lead to 26-20 and getting three points that proved to be crucial. Marsh clearly wasn't happy about the call after the game and called out head referee Tony Corrente "hip checking" him as he threw the flag.
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"On my way to the sideline, I got hip-checked by the ref. It's pretty clear," Marsh said after the game. "If I was to do that to a ref or even touch a ref, we get kicked out of the game and possibly suspended and fined. I just think that that was incredibly inappropriate."
The Bears were penalized 12 times for 115 yards in the loss.
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