Just when you think you've seen it all, Lamar Jackson gets tripped by a referee.
In the first quarter of the Ravens' Christmas night win in San Francisco, Jackson fled backwards trying to avoid a swarm of 49ers closing in on him. Jackson ran backwards into the end zone and tried to escape to his left. The only problem was the referee was in his way.
As he tried to get out of the way, the referee fell backwards. He tucked his legs trying to avoid Jackson, but to no avail. The referee clipped Jackson in the shin area as he tried to escape.
Jackson tried to backhand the throw as he went to the ground, but there was no receiver nearby and the throw didn't get back to the line of scrimmage, meaning it was intentional grounding. And since the throw happened in the end zone, it was a safety.
Would Jackson have been able to get the ball back to the line of scrimmage had he not been tripped? We'll never know, but either way, it put the 49ers up 2-0 in the first quarter.
Jackson said the referee apologized to him later in the game. Considering the Ravens won 33-19, the play ended up being something everybody could laugh about after the game.
"He was like, 'My bad,'" Jackson said. "But it's all good. Those two points helped [the 49ers] out a lot. I knew I was going to get away. I know Chase [Young] knows I was going to get away, too. Hats off to Chase. He did what he was supposed to do."
