Once the NFL has lost Al Michaels, it has an indisputable problem.

And that’s where we are Friday morning, after yet another prime time game that ended in controversy caused by very disturbing refereeing on Thursday Night Football.

“Too many games end this way,” Michaels said after the Baltimore Ravens defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 35-34. ‘They just do that.

“You’re missing calls. The whole thing. So frustrating for the fans. So frustrating.”

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – NOVEMBER 07: Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens and Joe Burrow #9 of the Cincinnati Bengals embrace after the game at M&T Bank Stadium on November 7, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

No-Call potentially decides the game

The Bengals and Ravens played an incredibly entertaining game for 59 minutes and 22 seconds. And all the while, the crowd gave Baltimore a 35-34 lead, with the Bengals going for a potentially game-deciding two-point play in the final 38 seconds.

Then, during that two-point play, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow threw an incomplete pass.

And that was apparently that.

Except Ravens defensive end Nnamdi Madubuike hit Burrow’s facemask with his left hand. Quarterbacks in the pocket may only be hit from the shoulder to just above the knees.

Madubuike accidentally grabbed Burrow’s face mask and the entire country saw the quarterback’s helmet rattle as he released the pass that fell incomplete.

Face mask cannot be rated

It was punishment according to the letter of the rule book. And if it was called, it could have changed the course of the game, because it would have given the Bengals another chance at another two-point conversion from a yard closer.

That never happened.

No call. No replay because such plays are not subject to replay review.

Ravens win.

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – NOVEMBER 07: Ar’Darius Washington #29 of the Baltimore Ravens defends Tanner Hudson #87 of the Cincinnati Bengals on a two-point conversion attempt in the final minute of the fourth quarter at M&T Bank Stadium on November 7, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)

Burrow: I never get those calls

Most of the questions at the Bengals’ press conferences afterward were about Cincy coach Zac Taylor going for the two-point play in the final minute to try to win the game instead of kicking the extra point to tie the game.

But that decision to go for 2 led to Burrow not getting a face mask. And the thing is, that play apparently featured multiple fouls on the Ravens that weren’t called, including a defensive stance next to the facemask.

“Yeah, in that situation you usually don’t get those calls,” Burrow said.

And what about the face mask?

“You know, I feel like I never really got those calls, so I don’t really expect that,” Burrow said after a heavy sigh. “I had a feeling there were a few that were close, but again, I don’t expect those.”

Pattern of missed face masks

Here’s the problem: Too many NFL games end this way. Or be partly decided in this way. And that’s not what fans should expect, regardless of Burrow’s pessimistic expectations.

You’ll remember that on Thursday, October 24, the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Minnesota Vikings 30-20.

The final tally sounds like the Rams won a convincing two-score game. But the game was actually a one-score game, 28-20 with 1:42 to play when Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold retreated into his end zone for a second-down pass.

He was fired because of Rams linebacker Byron Young’s play. The play resulted in a safety as Darnold went down in the end zone. Rams win.

At least that’s what the game book says.

Inglewood, California, October 24, 2024 – Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold wants a face mask penalty after being sacked by Rams linebacker Byron Young for safety reasons late in the fourth quarter at SoFi Stadium on Thursday. (Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

The Phantom Face Mask

Young even grabbed Darnold’s face mask during the play. But it was not shouted by an official standing less than five meters away. And again, the play cannot be reviewed, despite the fact that it was a scoring play.

Ironically, just days later, the NFL fined Young $7,014.19 for grabbing Darnold’s face mask. So the league essentially admitted that what Young did was against the rules.

But we’ll never know if the Vikings would have been able to get a tying touchdown and a two-point conversion because the play ignored the entire situation.

And this starts to get almost ridiculous when fans watching at home can see a clear violation, but the league doesn’t do anything about it until days later – perhaps -.

Inglewood, California, October 24, 2024 – Rams running back Kyren WIlliams is grabbed by the face mask by Vikings Ivan Pace Jr., who was called for a penalty in the first quarter at SoFi Stadium on Thursday. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

The solution to face mask problems

So here’s a solution: Next spring, the NFL competition committee will meet in a sunny part of the country before the league’s annual meetings. It would serve the integrity of the game if that committee would remember the feeling that followed the Rams win and Thursday’s Ravens win.

Instead of celebrating good games that were hard-won and fair-played, the NFL left those games with a black eye. With question marks over his ability to officiate games – even with the use of replay technology.

That’s when the NFL will have to make face mask calls next spring that were made and not reviewed.