NFL announces referee assignment for Saturday’s Patriots-Colts matchup
By the time the Patriots-Colts game ends on Saturday night, there’s a decent chance members of both fanbases will be seeing red. That’s because odds are during the game they’ll see plenty of yellow.
On Monday, the NFL announced the referee assignments for Week 15. The Patriots and Colts will get veteran Carl Cheffers and his crew Saturday night in Indianapolis. That crew is made up of Cheffers, umpire Tra Blake, Down Judge Jerry Bergman, Line Judge Jeff Seeman, Back Judge Matt Edwards, Side Judge Gary Cavaletto, and Field Judge Michael Banks.
That announcement is good news for fans of either team who enjoy seeing yellow on the field and referees on their screen. Cheffers’ crew has called 15.5 accepted penalties per game this season, which is the second most in the NFL (behind Shawn Hochuli, 15.9). That number could go up, with Cheffers’ team working Monday night’s game between the Cardinals and Rams.
Fans should be specifically for flags thrown in the secondary. No crew has thrown more pass interference flags than the 27 this crew has. They’ll penalize both sides, with a league-high nine OPI flags (they rank third with 18 DPI calls). They’ve also called the third most defensive holdings with 13.
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Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at abarth@985TheSportsHub.com.