148,503 Football Fans Once Demanded Firing of Super Bowl LVIII Referee Bill Vinovich Over Helmet-to-Helmet No Call

Imagine being so despised that thousands of fans petition to have you removed! Well, that’s what happened to Bill Vinovich. No, not this year, but way back in 2019. Thousands of fans had petitioned to have him removed from officiating Super Bowl LIII. It happened one of his controversial calls.

This year we’ve received no news of that happening yet. And there’re just three days left for the Super Bowl. So, we’re guessing that it will not happen this year again. Should the Chiefs and the 49ers be worried going into February 11?

Bill Vinovich faces the wrath of the crowd

Rams fans were not happy about Bill Vinovich. They were upset when they got to know Bill Vinovich would be officiating the NFC Championship. They went so far as to launch a petition on change.org demanding his removal from the game. it happened because of two reasons. One, they were pointing to a concerning trend: every time Vinovich officiates a Rams game, they lsot. Yup, every single time.

Vinovich has called the shots in eight Rams games since 2012. And the team has yet to bag a win under his watch. To make matters worse, they’ve racked up more penalty yardage in seven of those eight games. Ouch. In the 2018 season alone, the Rams suffered two losses with Vinovich at the helm. And that was including their first matchup with the Saints. That game was a doozy, with six accepted penalties, four of which went against the Rams.

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Luckily for the Rams, they actually broke the trend in that game. Not only did they win the NFC Title game 26-23, they even went on to win the Super Bowl. What was the second reason that prompted 148,503 to sign the petition?

Rams won on the back of a no-call?

The NFL chooses its Super Bowl crew based on merit. However, it’s worth noting that Bill Vinovich, despite his experience, has had some less-than-savory moments in his officiating career. The most infamous incident was during the 2019 NFC championship game. Rams CB Nickell Robey-Coleman delivered a helmet-to-helmet hit on Saints WR Tommylee Lewis in the fourth quarter. The referees didn’t flag the hit. And the Rams eventually went on to win the game in overtime.

The missed call sparked widespread criticism and led to significant changes in the NFL’s officiating rules. Starting from the 2020 season, teams were allowed to challenge pass interference calls in response to such incidents. Despite this history, Vinovich will lead the officiating crew for Super Bowl LVIII. However, he’ll be supported by umpire Terry Killens, down judge Patrick Holt, line judge Mark Perlman, field judge Tom Hill, side judge Allen Baynes, back judge Brad Freeman, and replay official Mike Chase.

Fans are hopeful that the teams’ skills and not a referees’ call would be the main determiner of Sunday’s game.

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