Nice Hit

This was not accidental. Period. I played Linebacker, as did this Ref. The way he shuffles his feet to get himself into position to make a solid tackle is almost perfect form. He could lower his ass a little bit and get his weight over his toes, not to mention he needs to get his head across the ball carrier.

The point being however, he was not "trying to get out of the way" like he has claimed.

My best guess is that for a minute, he forgot that he is not playing anymore.

I find myself moving slightly on the couch during close-up replays of defensive plays sometimes, getting my body in position to deliver a blow.

That is probably what happend here. He spent years of his life honing his insticts to make hits like this. He simply forgot what he was doing.