PHILADELPHIA – Detroit Lions defensive back Rock Ya-Sin didn’t care to speak with officials after a questionable call that could have given his team one more chance to leave Lincoln Financial Field with a victory.
With 1:51 left in Sunday’s Week 11 matchup between the Lions and Philadelphia Eagles, Jalen Hurts attempted to connect with receiver A.J. Brown on a third-and-8 from the Eagles’ 37-yard line. Ya-Sin, who was covering Brown initially, appeared to have played solid coverage on the dynamic receiver, forcing a fourth down.
Instead, officials flagged Ya-Sin for pass interference — a call bemoaned on the television broadcast and in the locker room — sealing the Eagles’ 16-9 win.
“The call — you know what I mean — I’m a seven-year vet going against an All-Pro player like A.J. Brown. He gets those calls, you know what I mean,” Ya-Sin told reporters after the game. “I gotta do a better job getting my head around maybe, or attacking the ball. The call, it is what it is.”
While Ya-Sin took ownership and was critical of himself in that pivotal moment, Lions coach Dan Campbell saw things differently, pleased with how his defensive back played Brown on the call in question.
“I thought he played defense like he did the whole game,” Campbell said at his postgame presser. “And I thought he challenged and played it like he did the very first rep that we played man-to-man. So I wouldn’t tell him to do anything different. Man, get up there and challenge, play your style, and that’s it.”
Campbell wasn’t the only one sticking up for Ya-Sin. When the defensive back was speaking to the media, he had to calm several teammates who were audibly vocal in their displeasure over the penalty. One who didn’t take it kindly was cornerback Amik Robertson.
“We all saw the play. We all saw it,” Robertson said. “I don’t even know what to say about that.”
When asked about his confidence in Ya-Sin to play through such a situation, Robertson said it isn’t just him who believes in the veteran defender.
“Not only me — we all do. We all have confidence not only in Rock but every man on this team has confidence in each other,” Robertson said. “So we’re going to live with it and die about it. So we’re going to go out there, we’re going to tussle, we’re going to be scrappy. It is what it is. I mean, like I said, we all saw the play.”
PFWA pool reporter Zach Berman spoke with game official Alex Kemp after the game about why they assessed the pass interference penalty on Ya-Sin.
“The official observed the receiver’s arm getting grabbed and restricting him from going up to make the catch,” Kemp said. “So, the ball was in the air, there was a grab at the arm, restricted him, and he called defensive pass interference.”
In a game that had been physical for the first 58 minutes, Ya-Sin receiving a flag at that point was uncommon.
“I mean, I let them do their job,” Ya-Sin said of why he didn’t ask for an explanation. “I tried to do my job, so it is what it is.”
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