It’s probably not accurate to call the Packers and Steelers rivals, though one could be forgiven for thinking that while watching the fracas that broke out between the two teams Sunday night.
And the referees found themselves in the middle of it.
The moment came in the fourth quarter, when the Packers were nursing a 22-19 lead and the game hung in the balance, despite Green Bay dominating second-half play.
The Steelers punted, as they would do many times in the last 30 minutes of game action, and after that punt, a scrap broke out between the two teams.
During the fight, multiple referees were knocked to the ground. Steelers outside linebacker Nick Herbig was labeled the “instigator” by the referees and received a 15-yard penalty for unnecessary roughness.
That penalty, along with another unsportsmanlike penalty against Pittsburgh’s DK Metcalf later in the game, played a large part in the Steelers’ eventual 35-25 defeat, and Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers talked about it in his post-game comments.
“I just feel like we had some discipline issues and some penalties, unnecessary,” Rodgers said. “And you’re not going to win a lot of games when we’re so bad on third down. Boz (Chris Boswell) bailed us out with four incredible kicks. But, playing good teams, we need to score touchdowns, and we just stalled out in the high red zone.”
Next up, the Pack heads back to the friendly confines of Lambeau Field for a game against the Panthers. The Steelers will stay put and host the surprising 7-1 Colts in what looks like a pivotal matchup with playoff implications.
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