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2025Carolina PanthersNFCNFC SouthNFLTampa Bay BuccaneersWeek 18

NFL Refs Leave Everyone Confused After Making Call That Clearly Didn’t Happen During Crucial Bucs-Panthers Game [VIDEOS]

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This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.

Referee in Bucs-Panthers game
Referee in Bucs-Panthers game (Photo via ESPN)

Saturday’s Panthers-Buccaneers game set the stage for one of the most confusing calls you’ll see all season. 

The very first NFL game of the new year has prompted more of the same: questionable calls and widespread complaints. 

Heck, fans thought one recent game was rigged before a ball was even kicked. 

Anyhoo, an NFC South title is up for grabs in this game, so the stakes are high. And, the way fans saw it, the refs definitely aren’t up to the task. 

Rico Dowdle heard a whistle after Bryce Young flipped a pass that he mishandled. Replays showed it was a backward throw. The refs offered a reason for their whistle shortly after.

They said it was a “backwards pass out of bounds,” although the ball never went out of bounds, resulting in lost yardage. 

Check it out below:

Needless to say, everyone was puzzled. 

“Who NFL wants in the playoffs Baker Mayfield  will win no matter what keep watching! These games been fixed for years,” someone wrote in the comments.

“This is actually insane,” said another.

And here’s another one…

“They don’t let him advance the fumble, then just make it so he was tackled right where he picks it up lmao, also then the OPI, and there were like 3-4 more bad calls the first half. It’s f***in atrocious,” a comment read.

“It’s very obvious they want the Bucs to win lmao,” someone observed.

The NFL will have a hard time explaining this one.

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