The Eagles were so dominant Sunday afternoon against the 49ers that some football fans and analysts are scrambling for explanations.
One that has bubbled up to the surface of the cesspool that is the internet: Lane Johnson was constantly false starting vs. San Francisco.
Yes, seriously.
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Former Eagles linebacker and current tepid take artist Emmanuel Acho asked the question on Twitter:
An ultra slow-mo video from some whiny Giants fan racked up a cool 330,000 views:
And if you scroll through the comments (I'd warn against it, but live your life) you'll find football fans agreeing with the assessment.
Except... it's not a penalty. It just looks like one when you slow a video all the way down, which is not how the referees are seeing it and not how it's actually happening in real life.
Former Eagles offensive lineman Tra Thomas chimed in on Sunday evening:
And former Eagles offensive lineman and Twitter wizard Brian Baldinger filmed an entire breakdown of the situation:
From Baldy's video:
"Watch Kelce start to squeeze and slide the ball. They're simultaneous. Some guys just have a fast-twitch. The ball's definitely moving, and Lane's moving at the same time."
NFL
Just because something looks like a penalty in ultra slow-motion doesn't mean it's actually a penalty, particularly when the referees are judging it in real time.
Don't you think opposing players would be losing their minds if they thought a guy was getting away with something on every single snap? They're not. Micah Parsons, who had to go against Johnson twice this season, spent Sunday night praising him to high heaven for his performance.
And don't you think we'd see these guys get dinged with a flag every once in a while if they were regularly false starting? Johnson was flagged twice across 974 snaps this season. Doesn't seem like referees view this fast get-off as a problem, which means it's not a problem.
Salty fans will stay salty, so this likely isn't the last you'll hear of these complaints. But it's a nothing-burger. We're on to the Super Bowl.