Rams offensive lineman Harvey Dahl got flagged for holding on Sunday, and then things took a turn that was either funny (if you share my sense of humor) or offensive (if you’re an NFL official).
As referee Jerome Boger was announcing the holding penalty, Dahl screamed, “That’s not f--king holding,” loudly enough to get picked up on Boger’s microphone and heard by everyone in the stadium and everyone watching at home. Boger was offended by Dahl’s profane objection and threw another flag on Dahl, for unsportsmanlike conduct. After the game Dahl said he was sorry.
“That was a mistake,” Dahl said, via the Belleville News-Democrat. “I shouldn’t have done that. You can’t make a bad situation worse obviously. I just have to stay composed there and not hurt my team. I didn’t know the microphone was on. My fault.”
Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo benched Dahl and gave him a lecture on the sideline.
“My education to Harvey was: ‘You don’t talk to the officials,’” Spagnuolo said. “He has to be careful of that.”
Here’s another lesson for Harvey: If you’re going to drop an F-bomb on a ref, wait until he turns his microphone off.