Jason Kelce refused to blame the officials for a crucial penalty call in the Eagles’ loss to the Seahawks – insisting he paid the price for ignoring warnings for years.

In the second quarter, with Philadelphia leading 10-0 and deep inside the red zone, the center was penalized for a false start with the Eagles seemingly primed for a ‘Brotherly Shove’ first down – and potentially a touchdown.

The referees came under fire, with accusations it was a bad call. But after the game, Kelce accepted that the blame lay with him.

The center revealed he had been told not to move the ball forward before the snap.

‘They’ve been warning me of that for years,’ Kelce said after the defeat – the Eagles’ third straight loss.

Jason Kelce refused to blame the officials for a penalty call in the Eagles' loss to the Seahawks
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Jason Kelce refused to blame the officials for a penalty call in the Eagles’ loss to the Seahawks


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The center was penalized for a false start with the Eagles on the Seahawks’ three-yard line

ABSURD: #Eagles Jason Kelce was called for a false start here

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These refs🤦‍♂️
pic.twitter.com/Q7Fb0lkgMk

— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) December 19, 2023

‘I had a tendency to do that in the past so they’ve definitely warned me before. I’ve got to be smarter, especially in that situation.’

Kelce believes that because the Eagles were third-and-inches, the officials were not going to give him any leeway.

‘I think if that’s a full yard to gain, probably not as (likely to be called),’ he said. ‘But because it was so short, if I move it forward at all it’s going to be called, and I’ve just got to be smarter than that.’

The penalty proved costly – the Eagles were at Seattle’s three-yard line and might have been only a couple of ‘Brotherly Shoves’ from the endzone.

In the end, they were forced to settle for a field goal. Then, in the dying moments of the fourth quarter, the Seahawks stole victory thanks to Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s touchdown.