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          Brady turns off TNF, citing 'ridiculous penalties'

          • Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff WriterSep 20, 2019, 02:00 AM
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              Mike Reiss is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the New England Patriots. Reiss has covered the Patriots since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2009. In 2019, he was named Massachusetts Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. You can follow Reiss on Twitter at @MikeReiss.
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          FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady tweeted Thursday night that "ridiculous penalties" in the first half of the Tennessee Titans-Jacksonville Jaguars game led him to turn it off.

          There were 15 penalties in the first half called by referee Shawn Hochuli's crew, eight of which were for holding. There were 20 penalties in total for the game, including declined penalties. No flags were thrown in the third quarter.

          The Titans, who lost 20-7 to the Jaguars, were flagged 12 times, with nine penalties being accepted. The 12 total penalties were their most since Week 5 of the 2017 season.

          The NFL has had an increased emphasis on offensive holding this season. Entering Thursday night, the highest total of holding penalties in a game was 11, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

          In Weeks 1-2, there were 178 flags for offensive holding, a 66% increase from the same time period last season. That spike powered a 16.2% increase in total penalties compared with Weeks 1-2 of last season, as well as a slight drop in scoring from 21.97 offensive points per game in 2018 to 20.9 in 2019.

          Brady seldom makes waves on league issues and is often complimentary of officiating. His tweets were noted on the television broadcast, with analyst Troy Aikman saying: "Tom Brady is one of the least controversial people we have in our game. He is league royalty. When he makes a statement like that, that should get somebody's attention."

          The Patriots quarterback wasn't the only NFL player noting the officiating on social media, with New York Jets safety Jamal Adams among those referencing Brady's tweet.

          Coincidentally, the Patriots and Jets play each other Sunday.

          Hochuli's crew threw more flags (306), including 79 for offensive holding, than any other crew in the 2018 season, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

          ESPN's Kevin Seifert contributed to this report.