The Steelers had 11 penalties called on them on Sunday, eight of which were accepted, both of which were season-highs for Pittsburgh. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin seems to think Sunday’s officiating crew called that game more strictly than most.
But Tomlin says that’s just part of the game, and he needs his team to adjust.
“Often times it’s our job to feel the tenor of a crew and adjust our behavior accordingly,” Tomlin said, via the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “We got into that game and the officials had a certain tenor, and we didn’t adjust to it.”
Tomlin said he doesn’t think his team’s penalties on Sunday indicate a problem with the Steelers being mistake-prone.
“So, am I worried about those issues moving forward? No, I am not,” Tomlin said. “But it’s a great opportunity to talk about learning the tenor of a crew.”
Ideally, NFL officiating would be consistent across the board, and NFL teams would not need to “adjust” anything based on the crew they were assigned. But Tomlin knows it’s not an ideal world, and teams sometimes need to play the game differently depending on how the officials are calling it.
