Photo: Demaryius Thomas Halloweens it up as a replacement ref -- or maybe not
Broncos receiver Demaryius Thomas came up with a Halloween costume sure to amuse NFL fans: He dressed as a replacement referee, complete with giant glasses to convey how unlikely it is that he'd make the right call; see a large version of the photo below. But will Thomas, whose performance in Denver's dismantling of New Orleans on Sunday reflects a steady improvement in his play, don this outfit tonight? Signs point to "no."![]()
Big photo below.
Why not? Because, as Yahoo! Sports reports, Thomas deleted the snap shortly after posting it on his Twitter feed -- an account that's currently dominated by declarations of faith. One image reads, "I am covered by the blood of Jesus," and there's also a retweet of a Biblical passage (Psalm 73:25-26) from former teammate Tim Tebow.
Fortunately, Peter Burns of Mile High Sports Radio shared the shot before it disappeared, so we can all enjoy it. Here it is:
As for why Thomas removed the image, we're left to speculate. Best guess: Someone on his management team suggested that it's risky for a pro footballer to be seen as making fun of a referee, since current crews might interpret the costume as ridiculing the profession as a whole, not just the out-of-their-depth guys who filled in during the early part of the season amid a labor dispute. Worse, he could get crosswise with the league, which issued an edict during the lockout of the regular refs not to criticize the fill-ins and is still prickly on the embarrassing subject.
Demaryius Thomas.
Which is too bad, since it's a genius costume. In our opinion, Demaryius, you definitely don't deserve a yellow flag.
More from our Sports archive: "Peyton Manning exorcises Tim Tebow once and for all in Saints blow-out."
































