‘Absolutely disgraceful’: Eagles fans and LeBron James erupt over late Super Bowl penalty

Earlier this week, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said the officiating in the NFL has never been better.

Eagles fans and Philly journalists on social media disagreed strongly after a holding call on cornerback James Bradberry allowed the Kansas City Chiefs to run out the clock and ultimately win Super Bowl LVII by a field goal, 38-35.

Longtime NBC Sports Philadelphia host Michael Barkann got profane on Eagles Postgame Live, called the penalty “utter, complete bull—.”

“You don’t make a call right then and there. You don’t let the game be decided by officiating,” Barkann said. “This is a freaking Super Bowl! And that should never happen!”

“That’s an absolutely disgraceful holding call at this spot in the Super Bowl. Embarrassing to call it,” wrote CBS3′s Pat Gallen.

“What a freaking ticky tack call at that point. Unbelievable. To have the refs decide a Super Bowl with that call is shameful,” wrote 94.1 WIP host Glen Macnow.

» READ MORE: Eagles’ James Bradberry owns up to pulling the jersey. To the ref, it was a clear penalty.

They were joined by Fox’s Greg Olsen, who was calling his first Super Bowl for the network. After watching a replay of the penalty, Olsen expressed some doubt it should’ve been called in that moment.

“I don’t know,” Olsen said. “On this stage, I think you let them play. I don’t love that call.”

Even Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James criticized the penalty on social media.

“His hand on his back had no effect on his route! This game was too damn good for that call to dictate the outcome at the end,” James wrote on Twitter.

Carl Cheffers, the lead referee in Super Bowl LVII, said there was not debate among the officials over the call, which he described as “a clear case of a jersey grab that caused restriction.”

“The receiver went to the inside and he was attempting to release to the outside. The defender grabbed the jersey with his right hand and restricted him from releasing to the outside. So, therefore, we called defensive holding,” Cheffers said following the game.

Despite the tough call, the Eagles declined to blame their heartbreaking Super Bowl loss on the officials.

“I’m not going to get into it whether they got it right or wrong,” center Jason Kelce said. “They called it, and that’s the way this goes. I’ve said this before, I’m never going to be somebody who puts blame or anything on officials.”

“That’s a hard job. They make a call. It is what it is,” Kelce added.

“That’s what he saw and he called it,” Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni told reporters following the game. “There’s so many plays that contribute to the end result of the game.”

“I pulled a jersey. They called holding,” Bradberry told reporters. “I was hoping they would let it ride, but it was holding.”