Carolina Panthers safety Mike Mitchell has slammed the performance of the match officials during his side's 23-10 playoff defeat to the San Francisco 49ers yesterday.
Mitchell had issues with a number of the referee's calls during the match, starting with an unnecessary roughness penalty given against him for a late hit on 49ers receiver Anquan Boldin on the first series of the game.
"That was a terrible call. This is playoff football, the National Football League. That was a terrible call. The ball was not on the ground," Mitchell told reporters.
"The replay showed it was still in the air. The receiver actually had an opportunity to bend over and catch the ball. It was a terrible call. A terrible call. One more time, a terrible call."
Mitchell was also unhappy with the officials' decision not to penalise Boldin for an apparent headbutt late in the first half having already flagged Panthers cornerback Captain Munnerlyn for a 15-yard penalty after a similar incident earlier in the contest.
"It was just ridiculous. A couple of things weren't called the same way. I made a good play taking his legs out, and he gets up in my face and headbutts me, which is the same exact thing you saw Captain Munnerlyn do," Mitchell added.
"It was the exact same play. One team gets the call, the other doesn't. I guess that's human error in football."
The Panthers missed out on a chance to face the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC championship game on January 19 with the defeat.
Barney Corkhill
