Unpacking the controversial non-call on Darnold's facemask and why the NFL's rules kept it off the review board.
In the Rams’ 30-20 victory over the Vikings, a missed face-mask penalty stirred controversy as the game’s outcome hung in the balance. With 1:42 left on the clock, Rams linebacker Byron Young sacked Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold in the end zone, sealing a safety.
But replays showed Young’s clear grab of Darnold’s face mask—a missed 15-yard penalty that could have given Minnesota a critical first down.
“Well, on that play, the quarterback was facing the opposite direction from me so I did not have a good look at it,” explained referee Tra Blake, who later stated that neither he nor the umpire had a clear view of the face-mask pull.
“The umpire had players between him and the quarterback, so he did not get a look at it… We couldn’t see it.”
The Vikings’ bench, led by a visibly frustrated coach Kevin O’Connell, was dismayed by the lack of a flag. “It looked like he got a pretty good amount of facemask there,” O’Connell noted, choosing not to press further. “Officiating and all that stuff—for us to talk about that…is not how we’re gonna respond.”
Under NFL rules, face-mask penalties are not reviewable, meaning Minnesota couldn’t challenge the no-call. The rules state that no player should twist, turn, or control an opponent’s facemask, with violations warranting a 15-yard penalty and potentially a disqualification if deemed flagrant.
Yet, without a flag thrown, the Vikings lost their chance at a late comeback.
Reviewable plays include possession, goal-line situations, boundary lines, and specific fouls like roughing the passer or intentional grounding—but face-mask penalties remain unreviewable.
While this missed call didn’t singlehandedly cost the Vikings the game, it undoubtedly closed the door on their final shot to even the score, igniting further debate over NFL review policies for such high-stakes moments.
Currently, NFL rules exclude face-mask penalties from reviewable plays. Challenges or video reviews are limited to specific scenarios, such as ball possession, boundary issues, and scoring plays.
However, infractions like roughing the passer, unnecessary roughness, and intentional grounding are reviewable. Because face-mask penalties don’t fall under these categories, officials cannot revisit the play to make a retroactive call.
For the Vikings, this missed call meant the end of their comeback hopes. Coach O’Connell, while visibly frustrated, remained composed when discussing the missed penalty:
“It looked like he got a pretty good amount of facemask there,” he noted, but chose not to dwell on the no-call.
While there’s no certainty that the Vikings would’ve scored if the penalty had been called, the incident has reignited discussions around which penalties should be reviewable, especially in game-altering situations like this one.
The NFL has made past efforts to expand reviews, such as briefly allowing pass interference calls to be challenged, though that rule was ultimately rescinded after proving ineffective.
For now, fans, players, and coaches must live with the current review rules, leaving calls like this one final — no matter how obvious they may appear on replay.
Read More: Cooper Kupp’s hilarious hair comparison to the Undertaker
NFL 
