The NFL is reviewing an incident that took place between an official and Cardinals tight end Trey McBride during Sunday’s game between Arizona and the New York Giants. 

McBride initially voiced his displeasure after he thought pass interference should have been called on a third-down incompletion, and the referee seemed to respond with an expletive. Cameras caught the official’s response to McBride, which quickly went viral. 

The altercation caught the attention of JC Tretter, the president of the NFL Players Association. 

“This kind of behavior from an official towards a player is unacceptable,” Tretter wrote on X. “Players are consistently held accountable when the roles are reversed. We expect the NFL to hold officials to the same standard.” 

CBS Sports sideline reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala was in close proximity to the incident. She shared her observations on X. 

“What’s wild is that it all started with Trey McBride saying ‘please’ when pleading his case for a PI flag,” she wrote. “He was heated for sure, but I never heard a curse from him. The harshest he got was, ‘You’re ruining the game.'” 

Ironically, Patriots coach Mike Vrabel was penalized after saying something similar to an official during New England’s win over the Buffalo Bills. The penalty helped set up a Buffalo touchdown. 

“I’ve said that 87 times since I’ve been a head coach,” Vrabel said afterward. “There’s nothing derogatory. You know, you’d have to ask him. I think he was a little sensitive. … I probably shouldn’t have sworn, but I can tell you that in my history of being on the sidelines as a head coach, I’ve said that, and I apologized to him.”  

It’ll be interesting to see how the NFL handles this situation.