Detroit Lions legend and former defender Ndamukong Suh made an excellent point recently regarding a huge penalty that almost swung the 2026 Super Bowl matchup.
Riq Woolen had an unbelievably ill-timed penalty called against him in the 3rd quarter of the Seattle Seahawks' NFC Championship bout against the Los Angeles Rams, which ended up converting what was a 4th down stop into a 1st down situation for the Rams. Woolen was taunting the Rams' sideline after the huge stop, which referees did not take kindly to.
That penalty ended up leading to an immediate score for the Rams. It was unbelievably costly, and almost made Woolen public enemy number one in Seattle for years to come. Of course, Seattle was simply too dominant, and ended up winning the contest, anyway.
Suh, commentating on the game for Sky Sports in the UK, said this about Woolen's taunting:
"The only thing that's frustrating about this is the simple fact you're not letting the game play out the way it is. We're high emotions. Whatever he said, he said what he said. There was no physical altercation, there was no nothing. They deserve the ball back after that?"
Suh says what all fans were thinking about Woolen's penalty
We know by now that Suh loves to amp up the energy during games, often doing it to perhaps an extreme degree. He's been known to make some dirty plays here and there, unfortunately, but he's also just generally remembered as a tough-nosed competitor while he was with the Lions.
Suh made an excellent point about Woolen's penalty at this point in the game. He made zero contact with any Rams players or coaches, simply using his words to brag about the Seahawks defense's stop in that moment. Given all the other chippy play that had happened in the contest already, why was this the straw that broke the camel's back?
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It just makes you wonder what Woolen said to draw such a huge penalty in that moment. Still, Suh is definitely right about how the referees mismanaged this play. Los Angeles didn't deserve to get the ball back on that penalty, and they immediately took advantage of it.
Had they won, would the talk of the league have been the Rams' comeback victory? Or, would it be the ref show once again on a huge stage? The NFL has to be so much more conscious about how these penalties are doled out, because right now, it doesn't look like there's any concrete penalty structure to follow as it pertains to taunting. It's vibes based.