The Houston Texans defeated the Los Angeles Chargers 20-16 on Saturday to clinch a playoff spot. However, it did not come without controversy.
With two and a half minutes left, CJ Stroud was sacked for a nine-yard loss on a third down, seemingly killing the drive. However, cornerback Tarheeb Still was adjudged to have made illegal contact against Christian Kirk away from the play despite having been charged at by the wideout:
The ensuing defensive penalty gave the Texans a new set of downs inside the Chargers’ 49, which Woody Marks used to carry the ball twice and seal the game.
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And as soon as the final whistle sounded, there was much condemnation of the officiating crew from various members of the NFL community, including former cornerbacks Patrick Surtain and Darius Butler:
We were just robbed as football fans of seeing Herbert vs the Texans defense in a 2 minute drill to win the game That’s an atrocity to football
Man DB’s don’t stand a chance in today’s game…smh
These calls man…
That’s the most impactful worst call of the season. Just brutal. That can’t happen.
DB penalty calls in 2025 are out of control – especially in the 4th qrt
I don’t root for the chargers but ref can’t call that in that moment! Too big of a moment. Also I root for the defense and that’s still a bad call at that moment.
Justin Herbert finished with 21/32 attempts completed for 236 yards and a touchdown to Oronde Gadsden against an interception He also led his team in rushing with six carries for 37 yards, but was also sacked five times.
Meanwhile, CJ Stroud completed 16 of 28 attempts for 244 yards and two touchdowns against as many interceptions.