Steelers’ Christian Kuntz, Mike Tomlin in disbelief over false start call on punt

Chris Adamski
Friday, Dec. 8, 2023 2:50 p.m. | Friday, Dec. 8, 2023 2:50 p.m.

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AP

Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin watches from the sidelines during the second half of Thursday’s game against the New England Patriots. Tomlin was not satisfied with the explanation officials gave him during the game on a false start call on long snapper Christian Kuntz.

A bob of the head left Christian Kuntz scratching his head, while Mike Tomlin was left figuratively shaking his dismissively.

The Pittsburgh Steelers’ long snapper, Kuntz was flagged for a curious false start during the fourth quarter of Thursday night’s loss to the New England Patriots.

“I was given an explanation,” Tomlin said after the game of his communication with officials in that moment. “I don’t know that I agree with it, but I was given an explanation.”

With the Steelers in punt formation on a fourth-and-3 at their own 38 with 5 minutes, 6 seconds left and New England ahead by three points, Kuntz apparently was penalized for lifting his head before snapping the ball.

That act, in the eyes of the officials, compelled New England’s Brenden Schooler to twitch and enter the neutral zone. Players on both teams (even those on the sidelines), in addition to fans on hand, reacted in a way that presumed Schooler was being flagged for encroachment/offsides. Even Schooler himself.

That didn’t happen, though.

“No abrupt movement is the rule,” Kuntz said. “So they must have thought I moved my head abruptly. I saw the big (video replay), and I don’t think I moved my head until he jumped offsides.”

A viewing of the play doesn’t support Kuntz’s contention that he didn’t move until after Schooler jumped. But it does line up with his insistence that his movement should not reasonably be considered “abrupt.”

“I don’t think I was abrupt with my head movement,” said Kuntz, who played in high school at Chartiers Valley and college at Duquesne.

If Schooler was deemed offsides, the 5-yard penalty would have given the Steelers a new set of downs in their quest to tie the score or take the lead.

In the end, the relevance of the sequence was mooted when the Steelers’ defense forced a three-and-out. The Steelers’ offense, though, again stalled, facilitating New England’s upset win.

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