Referee Denies in Engaging in Consensual Fiving with Vince Young

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↵After a kneel down to close the Titans win Monday night over the Texans, Vince Young appeared to exchange a high five with referee Jerome Boger. Knee-jerk alarmists piped up more conspiracy fantasies, even though the officiating in the game was horrid toward both teams. That and if there were some sort of agreement between Young and Boger, they most likely wouldn’t be so brazen about being chummy on the field. Nevertheless, a statement had to be released on the matter.↵↵⇥“It was not Jerome Boger’s intent to exchange a high-five with the player,” a league spokesman told the Houston Chronicle. “As Vince Young took a knee on the game’s final play, Jerome Boger jogged in with his right arm in the air to signify the play was over. That is the proper administrative signal for the referee.↵⇥↵⇥“As Young turned around, he saw Boger approaching the line of scrimmage with his arm raised. As Boger moved toward the line of scrimmage, he started to bring his arm down. However, before he lowered his arm, Young, moving towards the referee, raised his own arm and the two exchanged what appeared to be a quick high-five.”↵⇥

↵↵↵Seems like a goofy move by a guy who was thrilled to have kept his winning streak going. No great shakes, right? But the NFL, like any professional sports league, is eager to quash any appearance of collusion between players and officials, even when suggested in an obviously joking manner. Chad Ochocinco was slapped with a $20,000 fine for pulling out dollar bills on the field to make it seem like he was bribing a referee. While it’s unlikely there will be any fine for Vince Young, the league had to make certain appearances weren’t compromised.↵

↵↵Not sure why celebratory incidents with the refs only seem to happen at Titans games. During last year’s playoffs, then-Ravens defensive back Corey Ivy hugged a referee after Baltimore defeated Tennessee to advance to the AFC Championship. Officiating crews working Titans games will just have to expect this kind of thing.
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↵(H/T to Deadspin for the image)↵

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