During the Sunday Night game between the Arizona Cardinals and the New York Giants, a CBS Sports camera caught a heated interaction between the Cardinals tight end Trey McBride and line judge Jeff Seeman. The clip quickly circulated online and caught the attention of NFLPA director JC Tretter and ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
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It appeared as if Seeman hurled some profane comments at the tight end as the latter tried to plead his case on calling for a penalty on the New York Giants. Later, McBride was seen shaking his head in disappointment after a Cardinals staffer tried to disengage the situation. When he noticed the camera, the tight end pointed at it and laughed.
“The NFL said it is reviewing the situation in which an official appears to use profanity at Cardinals TE Trey McBride,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter wrote on X along with a visual of the brief interaction between McBride and Seeman. “The NFLPA Executive Director JC Tretter called for the NFL to hold the official accountable.”
There were less than five minutes left for the game to end when it happened. It was right after the officials did not call a pass interference or illegal contact penalty on New York’s Dru Phillips, who made contact with McBride before he caught a pass from Jacoby Brissett on a third-and-2 play late in the game.
“This kind of behavior from an official towards a player is unacceptable,” JC Tretter denounced the official in his X post. “Players are consistently held accountable when the roles are reversed. We expect the NFL to hold officials to the same standard.”
Trey McBride ended the game with seven receptions on 12 targets for 31 yards. Of course, it was his lowest production this season, but it’s also the fourth consecutive game that witnessed him getting double-digit targets. Unfortunately, things went downhill for the Cardinals.
With just 12 seconds remaining on the clock, Deonte Banks intercepted a pass from Brissett and ran it back for a pick-6. However, time ran out, and the Arizona Cardinals lost the game 34-26.
“This one’s gonna sting,” the Cardinals’ head coach Mike LaFleur said. “It’s not gonna be the most fun ride home.”
But this single missed penalty couldn’t have ruined a 60-minute game for the Cardinals.
Penalties add woes to the Arizona Cardinals’ boiling situation
On a third down in the third quarter, when Arizona had a lead over New York, Dominic Zvada kicked a field goal that turned the scoreboard around in the Giants’ favor. Soon, the flag was up, and the officials called the Cardinals defensive lineman, Dante Stills, for holding on the play. That brought the Giants back to 1st-and-10.
The call stunned the entire NFL community, including the men behind the microphones in the broadcast booth. Even LaFleur claimed that “you can’t do that.”
And just two plays later, Jameis Winston sent a pass to Theo Johnson, securing a three-point lead with a touchdown and a successful two-point conversion.
Sports Illustrated pointed out that the Cardinals are one of the most penalized teams in the league as the NFL entered the fourth week of the season. In the Week 4 game, the Cardinals received a total of seven penalties and lost 55 yards because of them.
“I’ve gotta go look at the tape and see where some of those breakdowns occurred and work to get it fixed, and fixed fast,” LaFleur said.
Nevertheless, the NFL’s investigation into Jeff Seeman’s profane outburst is a necessary step toward accountability. But it won’t reverse the Cardinals’ heartbreaking defeat. Plagued by questionable calls and constant flags, Arizona must urgently clean up its own penalty woes before it ruins its season.