‘It’s a tough deal’: Kyle Shanahan, Fred Warner, Kerry Hyder discuss the roughing-the-passer penalty

The San Francisco 49ers were still in the game at that point. It looked like defensive lineman Kentavius Street made a critical play, getting to New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees to force a 3rd-and-long. Then 49ers players saw the flag thrown.

It was frustrating because it looked like Street had done everything right. He didn't drive his weight into Brees and even landed on his side to ensure that it was a textbook sack. Teammates who did not make the trip to New Orleans and were watching from home were vocal with their dissatisfaction with the outcome.

"I don't understand that call!!" cornerback Richard Sherman tweeted out. "Street landed off to the side."

"That is ridiculous," defensive lineman Solomon Thomas wrote. "He turned to the side."


Head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked after the game what explanation he received from the officials following the play and penalty.

"I mean, that's just how he saw it," Shanahan responded. "He said he thought he saw it, and he got some agreement from the refs around him. So, that's what they went with."

Then Shanahan corrected himself.

"No, no. They said he drove him into the ground and landed on him," the coach added.

The penalty was extremely frustrating for the defense. Not necessarily just because it was a bad call, but because of the situation in which it put the unit. Instead of a 3rd-and-long, New Orleans was gifted a 1st-and-10 from the 11-yard line.

"It's a tough deal, for sure," linebacker Fred Warner said, "with the whole (situation of) the league trying to protect quarterbacks. That's one of the ways they're trying to protect them, is (stopping defenders from) landing on them.

"At that point, we just knew we had to try and get back to what we were doing. It was a new set of downs. We just had to try to keep them out of the end zone."

Warner didn't want to comment on whether or not he felt Street did what he was supposed to do on the play.

"I actually didn't have as good of a look at it," Warner said. "I'd have to see the tape on it, honestly."

Defensive lineman Kerry Hyder was more willing to voice his opinion on the penalty that nullified Street's sack.

"I think they've got to let us play ball," Hyder told reporters. "Street did a great job of, I think, falling on the side. And I think it's just one of them calls. I don't think that call had to be made, but it's one of those things that you've just got to play through it."

Then you have Street's thoughts on the penalty.