The officiating crew in Super Bowl LVII drew the ire of Philadelphia fans when a flag flew on Eagles cornerback James Bradberry with 1:48 to play.

Instead of Kansas City attempting a 33-yard field goal to take the lead after an incomplete pass, the Chiefs had a first down at the Eagles 11-yard line after Bradberry had been called for holding Kansas City wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster as he ran his pass route.

The new set of downs allowed the Chiefs to run down the clock, even with Philadelphia trying to let them score, and Harrison Butker kicked a 27-yard field goal with eight seconds to play to lift Kansas City to a 38-35 victory in the NFL championship game for the 2022 season.

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As might be expected, after the game, Smith-Schuster said he had “100 percent” been held.

But Bradberry agreed with him.

Standing in front of his locker, Bradberry was asked if he thought he had done enough to merit the call at that point in Super Bowl LVII.

“That’s not up to my judgment,” Bradberry said. “I was hoping he would let it go. But, of course, he’s a ref. This is a big game. It was a hold, so they called it.”

The game’s referee, Carl Cheffers, told PFWA pool reporter Lindsay Jones that there was no doubt Bradberry had committed an infraction.

“The receiver went to the inside, and he was attempting to release to the outside,” Cheffers said. “The defender grabbed the jersey with his right hand and restricted him from releasing to the outside, so, therefore, we called defensive holding. …

“(The receiver) went to the inside. He put a foot down to try to break to the outside, so it was right at the break to the outside where the defender grabbed his jersey and prevented his free release to the outside.”

Philadelphia coach Nick Sirianni didn’t quibble about the call after the game.

“It’s not my job to make the call,” Sirianni said. “Those guys got to do that in split-second scenarios. And so, that’s what he saw, and he called it. I know it always appears to be that it’s one call that makes – it’s not what it is. There’s so many plays that contribute to the end result of the game, and today they were better than we were.”

A former Pleasant Grove High School and Samford star, Bradberry started at cornerback and made five tackles for Philadelphia in Super Bowl LVII.

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The game ended Bradberry’s first season with the Eagles, and it might have been his final outing with Philadelphia, too.

Released by the New York Giants in May in a salary-cap move, Bradberry signed a one-year contract with Philadelphia and earned second-team All-Pro recognition for his performance in the 2022 season.

If the Eagles don’t sign Bradberry to a contract extension, he will become an unrestricted free agent at 3 p.m. CDT March 15.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.