Eagles’ Malcolm Jenkins blasts refs for “terrible” call that negated fumble recovery against Cowboys

The Philadelphia Eagles almost found themselves in great position to start strong in a big divisional game against the Dallas Cowboys.

Almost.

Unfortunately for the Eagles, the fumble that was forced by Malcolm Jenkins and then recovered by Kamu Grugier-Hill on the opening kickoff was not awarded to Philadelphia.

Officials didn’t even rule it a fumble at first; Doug Pederson had to challenge the call. Then the refs ruled that there wasn’t a clear recovery by the Eagles, despite the fact it looked clear as day on replay.

Jenkins rightfully called out the officiating after the game.

Eagles players and fans alike have the right to be mad after this bullshit explanation.

Yeah, there’s just no evidence of the Eagles recovering the ball.

Jenkins is likely going to be fined by the league for his comments. The ref who screwed up the call won’t, though.

Look, I don’t enjoy being “the refs screwed us!” guy. I like to think officiating usually evens out over the course of the game. I’m also a firm believer that you need to beat your opponent so badly that poor officiating can’t cost you the game.

With that said, this seems like a unique situation to me. The Eagles recover the ball there and they’re instantly in scoring position. There’s a very high chance they come away with at least three points, which would’ve been the difference in this game. Maybe they even score a touchdown and really set the tone for the game.

Instead, the refs robbed the Eagles of a golden opportunity for no good reason. Sucks.

FIRST UPDATE: Quotes from the head official.

SECOND UPDATE: Eagles special teams player D.J. Alexander chimes in.