It's another week, and besides the Patriots offensive line being a consistent problem that remains the main reason the team stays out of the end zone, it's another game when the NFL officials decide to ignore blatant helmet-to-helmet contact happening right in front of them.
It happened earlier this year with a hit on Drake Maye against the Jets, a game that forced the rookie quarterback to be sidelined for the rest of the matchup. He was able to clear concussion protocol throughout the week to be back for the following game, but it still doesn't negate the inefficiency of the referees in today's league.
Unfortunately, the Patriots are dealing with a similar situation against the Colts on Sunday, with a brutal head hit to tight end Hunter Henry early in the first quarter. It was blatant and caused him to go straight into the blue medical tent to be checked for a concussion.
Brutal colisión de Hunter Henry pic.twitter.com/hLQ3OgpmEI
— Nación Patriota (@nacionpatriots) December 1, 2024
While Henry has since been able to return to the field, it is still a bad look for the NFL to have officials who constantly miss big-time calls that endanger the welfare of their players. For as much as they preach about the health of their players being at the forefront of importance, the number of obviously missed penalties is concerning, especially when the game commentators and referee in the booth feel it was a missed call, as well.
It would be good if this is just a one-off for today's game and not something we will continue to see for the rest of the day. The Patriots certainly can't afford to lose a guy like Henry, nor do we want to see any player suffer an injury that should have been penalized in real-time.
Fingers are crossed, but there's not much optimism we won't see something else.