‘What A Joke’, ‘NFL Refs Are Atrocious’ — Lions Fans Flip Out Over Poor Officiating During Thursday Night Football vs. Bills

Priyanshu Choudhary Fri, September 18, 2026 at 3:07 AM UTC

0

‘What A Joke’, ‘NFL Refs Are Atrocious’ — Lions Fans Flip Out Over ‘Poor Officiating’ During Thursday Night Football vs. Bills

Fans were expecting an instant classic when the Detroit Lions took on the Buffalo Bills in Week 2 in a primetime slot on Thursday Night Football. It was the first regular-season NFL game at the new Highmark Stadium and a matchup between two of the best offenses in the league.

However, the first half had been far from a competitive affair. A rout from the home team saw the Lions trailing by 17 points going into the break. But for a huge chunk of the fan base, that was a direct result of the referees’ interference.

Lions Fans Aren’t Happy With Referees Against Bills

A dominant first half saw the Bills score a touchdown on all four of their possessions. Running up the score, they tallied 27 points in no time, with a last-second field goal leading the Lions to 10.

But for fans, the offensive dominance from the Bills, who ranked fourth on PFN’s Offense Impact Metric, was a direct result of the officiating. For them, whenever the Lions made an excellent play defensively, it was negated by some kind of penalty or flag.

“This game is rigged,” one fan outright claimed, but it was far from a singular instance.

IMPROVE YOUR TEAM:PFN’s Free Fantasy Trade Calculator

Even Yahoo Fantasy Sports joked that the referees were making their presence felt anytime the Lions made a play.

Others believed the officials were swallowing their whistles for any penalties on the Bills, particularly on the offensive line. Moreover, the situation became doubly problematic as they called everything against the Lions.

Advertisement

“The NFL refs are atrocious,” one fan swore. “The Bills’ left tackle is getting away with the patented Chiefs ‘non-called false start’ every snap, and the Lions are penalized at opportune times for Buffalo. Sad.”

One account on X, called Rate the Refs, even shared a clip of one such egregious sequence, writing, “This was called a hold on the Lions, and it erased a huge gain from Gibbs. Not seeing a whole bunch on this to justify the flag.”

One fan used harsher language in his critique; he called out, “F these refs, holding more like on O-line for the Bills. All those jersey grabs, and it’s only on Lions. Yeah, Lions aren’t playing good, but that was expected.”

BE THE GM OF YOUR FAVORITE TEAM:PFN’s Free NFL Mock Draft Simulator

The discrepancy in the calls on the offensive line was too much for some fans to ignore. One fan claimed, “These refs are outrageous. Holding on the @Lions after a big okay, but ignoring everything the @BuffaloBills offensive line is doing. This is too egregious, @NFL. What a joke.”

The complaints against officiating have become a regular fixture, especially on primetime games.

But as fans continue to pile on blame, it remains to be seen if the NFL will address any potential issues that arise from it.

This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Sports”