Titans Committed the Dumbest Penalty of the Season Against the Bengals

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The Tennessee Titans and Cincinnati Bengals were locked in a tight battle on Sunday when disaster struck for the Titans. They trailed the visiting Bengals 20-16 late in the fourth quarter, and an incredibly stupid penalty handed Cincinnati the win.

With 1:53 left, the Bengals faced fourth and 13 on Tennessee's 13. They lined up to kick a field goal that would have made it 23-16. That would have given the Titans one final drive with about 1:40 left to get into the end zone.

Evan McPherson kicked the ball through the uprights for a 31-yard field goal as expected, but there was a flag. Titans defensive line man Kevin Strong was called for unnecessary roughness for plowing over the long-snapper. He basically broke the first rule of special teams play.

Here's video:

That is absolutely inexcusable. The long snapper's head is down, so he isn't allowed to be touched due to player safety concerns. It's a rule everyone who plays special teams around the NFL is fully aware of and Strong broke it.

That gave the Bengals a first down, and they were able to run the clock out with three kneel-downs. Strong's penalty handed the game to Cincinnati. Just a stupid, stupid play.