FoxSports: Seattle was the better team... - Page 3

Taco John · 02-06-2006, 01:14 AM

Refs were far from super in this one

Kevin Hench / FOXSports.com

This is the space where I get to crow about the frightening precision of my Super Bowl prediction.

Where I get to remind everyone that I guaranteed the Steelers would win the title after they beat the Colts. That they were the only championship-caliber team among the final four. That they would dismantle the Broncos in Denver and waylay whomever the NFC sent at them. This is the space where I get to wag a finger at my colleague Ian O'Connor, with whom I'd waged a dueling columns battle of opposing prognostication. He picked the Seahawks and made a very strong case for them.

This is the space where I get to say, I told ya so. But I won't. I can't.

I've never felt so empty being right. I feel dirty. I wish I'd been wrong. The Steelers did not deserve to win this game. They were not the better team. O'Connor was right. Seattle was the better team.

So, Paul Tagliabue, how does a team lose when it outgains an opponent by 57 yards, controls time of possession and wins the turnover battle?

Like a crazed CIA analyst running through the halls of Langley screaming into open offices about some impending calamity, I've been shrieking hysterically about the terrible officiating in the NFL and warning that some day the brutal calls were going to affect the outcome of the Super Bowl.

That some day was Sunday.

Every single questionable, marginal or outright bad call went against the Seahawks.

Their first three big plays were all wiped out by penalty calls. On their second drive, Darrell Jackson caught an 18-yard pass on 3rd-and-6 that would have given Seattle a first down at the 23. But Chris Gray was called for holding James Farrior. When Farrior pushed upfield, Gray did hook him with his right arm, and Farrior went down. When referee Bill Levy flagged Gray, it was a bad omen for the Seahawks. Instead of being on the edge of the red zone, they came away without any points.

On their third drive, the Seahawks looked to take a 7-0 lead when Jackson separated from Chris Hope in the end zone and Matt Hasselbeck delivered a perfect strike to his outside shoulder. The back judge looked uncertain —sound familiar, Patriots fans? — then finally jerked his flag out and called offensive pass interference to wipe out the touchdown. The replay showed receiver and defender hand-fighting with Jackson getting the slightest push into Hope's chest before turning to catch the ball. ABC's John Madden thought the call was dubious. FOX analyst and all-time great offensive lineman Brian Baldinger had no doubts, calling it "absolutely horrendous" on his FOXSports.com Super Bowl Instant Analysis. ESPN's Steve Young and Michael Irvin also had no uncertainty, dismissing the call as ticky-tack and insisting the Seahawks got robbed of a TD.

Then came a huge call on the first play of the second quarter. Peter Warrick ripped off a 33-yard punt return to give Seattle the ball at the Steelers 46. But Etric Pruitt was called for holding. How clear was it? Well, Madden thought the call was for Pruitt holding the gunner at the beginning of the play. It wasn't. The flag came in during the runback and it looked pretty minor. Another example of an official searching to make a call.

So despite totally dominating the first 20 minutes of the game, the Seahawks led only 3-0.

Then came Pittsbugh's first touchdown. Whether you think Roethlisberger broke the plane of the goal line seems to depend on which team you were rooting for. The odd part was the line judge seemed to have determined that Big Ben had come up short as he ran in from the sideline. Since Roethlisberger had been pushed back well short of the goal line I don't know what he could have seen as he got closer to the pile that would have made him change his mind. But up went the arms. Had Roethlisberger been ruled short of the plane, that call would no doubt have stood too. But you figure the Black and Gold would have pounded it in from the two-inch line on fourth down so there's not that much here for Seattle fans to complain about except for the continuing storyline that every single call was going the Steelers' way. And the worst was yet to come.

The Seahawks were on the verge of taking a 17-14 lead early in the fourth quarter when officiating disaster struck. Hasselbeck had drilled a pass down the seam to Jerramy Stevens to set up first-and-goal at the one when suddenly Levy appeared in the middle of the screen to call the play back on account of holding on Sean Locklear. No less a source than newly-minted Hall of Famer John Madden came right out and said it was a bad call. This penalty was beyond ticky-tack. Baldinger called it "another terrible call" and added that the Steelers were offsides on the play. It was yet another official searching for a call, desperate to throw his flag, yearning to impact the action. Why, why, oh, why? That's 14 points the officials simply took away from the Seahawks. Incredible.

After a sack, Hasselbeck threw a pick and then was penalized 15 yards for making the tackle. I'm not kidding. The same thing happened in the Indy-Pittsburgh game in the regular season. It's like the officials become so discombobulated during the change of possession that they just randomly start throwing flags. The call was that Hasselbeck had thrown an illegal block below the waist on the return. Never mind that Hasselbeck wasn't trying to block anybody and did, in fact, make the tackle. Just another terrible call that cannot be reviewed in Paul Tagliabue's NFL.

The Steelers took quick advantage of their enhanced field position and just like that it was 21-10 Pittsburgh when it should have been 17-14 Seattle.
But the stripes weren't done.

First, they blew a fumble call on the field — of course against Seattle — before overturning it after replay. Then, with the Steelers trying to run out the clock, Levy granted Roethlisberger a timeout, even though the play clock clearly read zero before the quarterback signaled for time. It ended up being the final bad call in Seattle's coffin. As Madden and Al Michaels watched the replay they shared a laugh about a similar bad non-call in an earlier playoff game between the Bears and Panthers. This is what it has come to:

Announcers comparing the bad calls happening before them to the bad calls from earlier rounds of the playoffs. Is this really what the NFL wants?

Did the refs get this Ben Roethlisberger touchdown call right? It's certainly up for debate. (Elaine Thompson / Associated Press)

With Cris Collinsworth lobbying for pass interference to be eligible for review on Inside the NFL after New England got jobbed in Denver; Joey Porter inveighing against the league after the game in Indy; Young and Irvin railing at halftime of the Super Bowl; Baldinger being spot-on with his Instant Analysis critique of the officials; and Madden and Michaels wondering aloud about the officiating during the game ... is anybody in the league office listening?

Or can we pretty much count on next year's playoffs being dominated by the officials too?

Was that Mike Holmgren or Mike Martz?

The one area where most people agreed Seattle might have an edge was on the sidelines. Mike Holmgren was supposed to be a better game coach than Bill Cowher. But a funny thing happened to Holmgren at the end of the first half (and again at the end of the game): he became Mike Martz. Not once, but twice, Holmgren basically ran the clock out on himself.

One other decision Holmgren made should haunt him. After Mack Strong did a shameful job of not stretching out for a first down — on a tackle by a cornerback no less — the Seahawks faced 4th-and-inches at their own 26 with a 3-0 lead in the second quarter. The situation reminded me of when Bill Belichick went for it in a similar situation against the Colts in the playoffs three years ago, made it and sent a statement. Despite having an MVP tailback who was 16-for-16 on 3rd-and-1 this season, Holmgren went the safe route and punted. The Steelers scored and Seattle never led again.

Darrell Jackson, what might have been

After tying a Super Bowl record with five catches in the first quarter, Darrell Jackson was shut out. But, oh, what might have been. If not for a holding call, a marginal offensive pass interference penalty and a momentary lapse of knowing where he was on the field, Darrell Jackson could have had eight catches in the first half for 124 yards and two touchdowns.

As it turned out, his five catches for 50 yards will be easily forgotten.

Joey Porter vs. Jerramy Stevens

Joey Porter was pretty invisible. Jerramy Stevens wished he was. Despite scoring a touchdown, he had three huge drops, two of which were drive killers when the Seahawks were marching deep in Steelers territory. Porter may have had only three tackles and no sacks, but the "soft" label he hung on Stevens sure seemed to fit as the 6-foot-7 tight end short-armed several passes and seemed to be hearing footsteps all night.

Kevin Hench is supervising producer of The Sports List on Fox Sports Net.

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/5310192

Dr. Van Halen · 02-06-2006, 08:15 AM

I think what bothers me most is that this is the Super Bowl officiating squad. They earned the right to call this game through a process of performance evaluation.

This is supposedly the BEST crew.

That is frightening.

**Bowser** · 02-06-2006, 08:25 AM

Of course the NFL wanted the Steelers to win. One for the thumb; Bettis retiring after a Hall of Fame career in his hometown; Cowher solidifying his position as a HoF coach; on and on.

The refs should give their paychecks to charity. There was a debate on another thread about the pass interference on D. Jackson, and I thought it was a crap call. How many times do you see that call on a touchdown pass? And if Jackson was Terrell Owens, that TD stands. Not to mention the personal foul Hasselbeck picked up for tackling Ike Taylor, and Jackson being ruled out of bounds on another TD pass when he clearly kicked the pylon. Horrible.

However, all of that being said, Seattle blew it. Two missed field goals and numerous dropped passes did them in.

Matt Hasselbeck is this years version of Jake Delhomme from a couple of years ago.

kpic · 02-06-2006, 08:34 AM

I would never (prior to this years playoffs) think there is a conspiracy in the NFL to favor a certain team over another (and I highly doubt most conspiracies by nature) but while watching the Indy Vs Pitt. playoff game I think most of would agree it seemed as though NFL was trying their best to lean the odds in favor of Indy and Pittsburgh was able to overcome those odds. I was not rooting for either team but after watching last nights game I will always feel that the NFL leaned the odds in Pittsburgh’s favor and Seattle was unable to overcome them as Pittsburgh did earlier against Indy.

It is a sad day for me to be an NFL fan that I will now think one way or another instead of letting the players play the NFL will attempt to put a "storybook" scenario to certain games. Somehow I feel like I did when I was a kid and wrestling finally came out and admitted it was just a planned outcome and now I realize that I may someday in my lifetime see the NFL as "Sports Entertainment".

Lono · 02-06-2006, 08:52 AM

[QUOTE=arc]I can't believe I agree with TJ.

Instead, after the catch at the one is taken away and Hasselback gets flagged for making the tackle after the desparation pass that's picked on third down, the game was over and it was snooze fest after that.

This is my take on the Hasselback block penalty. After watching it several times you can clearly see he was attempting to take out the lead blocker. The blocker kind of jumped to the side a little bit to keep his legs from getting cut. Hasselback just got lucky by making the tackle. He was attempting to take out the lead blocker by his legs which is illegal. That is why the flag got thrown.

Kerberos · 02-06-2006, 08:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bowser

There was a debate on another thread about the pass interference on D. Jackson, and I thought it was a crap call. How many times do you see that call on a touchdown pass? And if Jackson was Terrell Owens, that TD stands.

Maybe THIS time the call had farther reaching implications like "THE SUPERBOWL" ... But I have watched TonyG get this call against him time and time again and defenders can maul him up one side of the field and down the other but one little pushoff from TonyG and he gets the same flag.

I CANNOT feel sorry for anyone getting flagged for that. Sorry I have seen our team get called for it as well.

If the Seahawks would have made a few more plays this point may have been moot. IMO

Steelers were getting hosed pretty good in the playoffs by bad officiating at INDY but they still found a way to win. nuff said.

Maybe the officiating wasn't equal both ways but how many times have we as Chiefs fans seen the same thing happen to US?

.

jynni · 02-06-2006, 08:55 AM

I'm actually quite shocked - while watching the game I didn't think the officiating was that bad.

Sure the OPI on Seattle was a tad tickytac (the official was not undecided though - he waited to see if the receiver caught the ball). OPI was also called on Pitt at another point in the game and I thought it was just as tickytac.

Ben did cross the LOS on his touchdown. Remember, all that has to happen for a touchdown is for the nose of the ball to pass the front of the goalline. It did that much, even if it didn't completely cross it.

**Bob Dole** · 02-06-2006, 08:57 AM

Bob Dole is pretty sure he remembers an "illegal block" personal foul call on an interception tackle going against KC in the recent past.

Lono · 02-06-2006, 08:59 AM

It doesnt matter if he kicked the pylon or not. He had never established himself in bounds. Touching the pylon only comes into play when you already have possesion. He clearly had one foot down and the other out of bounds. Another thing if Jackson's push off wasnt right in front of the official no it wouldnt have been called. But the rules say he can not extend his arm. He CLEARLY extended his arm to get seperation. When you do something like that right in front of the official its going to get called. The ref was trying to get the flag out immediately just couldnt find it. Of course fox sports didnt want to see that. Another thing no one wants to talk about Hasselback's fumble? Are you kidding me he got touched by a finger nail before he went down. He fumbled the football. Steelers ball. Seattle had a ton of chances to score but couldnt put it in time after time. Dropped balls and their defense giving up the big play lost them the game, not the officials.

jspchief · 02-06-2006, 09:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lono

It doesnt matter if he kicked the pylon or not. He had never established himself in bounds. Touching the pylon only comes into play when you already have possesion. He clearly had one foot down and the other out of bounds. Another thing if Jackson's push off wasnt right in front of the official no it wouldnt have been called. But the rules say he can not extend his arm. He CLEARLY extended his arm to get seperation. When you do something like that right in front of the official its going to get called. The ref was trying to get the flag out immediately just couldnt find it. Of course fox sports didnt want to see that. Another thing no one wants to talk about Hasselback's fumble? Are you kidding me he got touched by a finger nail before he went down. He fumbled the football. Steelers ball. Seattle had a ton of chances to score but couldnt put it in time after time. Dropped balls and their defense giving up the big play lost them the game, not the officials.

Odd that you justify the push off and Jackson being out of bounds as the letter of the law, then want to overlook the tackle on Hasselbeck because it was "only a fingernail". A fingernail is all it takes.

**Bugeater** · 02-06-2006, 09:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bowser

Of course the NFL wanted the Steelers to win. One for the thumb; Bettis retiring after a Hall of Fame career in his hometown; Cowher solidifying his position as a HoF coach; on and on.

The refs should give their paychecks to charity. There was a debate on another thread about the pass interference on D. Jackson, and I thought it was a crap call. How many times do you see that call on a touchdown pass? And if Jackson was Terrell Owens, that TD stands. Not to mention the personal foul Hasselbeck picked up for tackling Ike Taylor, and Jackson being ruled out of bounds on another TD pass when he clearly kicked the pylon. Horrible.

However, all of that being said, Seattle blew it. Two missed field goals and numerous dropped passes did them in.

Matt Hasselbeck is this years version of Jake Delhomme from a couple of years ago.

I can't believe that play wasn't reviewed either, it was close enough that in a game of this magnitude it should have had a closer look.

Eleazar · 02-06-2006, 09:06 AM

The calls were definitely slanted toward Pittsburgh.

Seattle still had a chance to win and didn't, but if they don't take the TD off the board or call the invisible holding penalty, the game would have been a lot different.

Lono · 02-06-2006, 09:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jspchief

Odd that you justify the push off and Jackson being out of bounds as the letter of the law, then want to overlook the tackle on Hasselbeck because it was "only a fingernail". A fingernail is all it takes.

So you think that fingernail tackled him? Just because I touch you and you run 3 or 4 yards dive and fumble doesnt mean your down by contact.

jspchief · 02-06-2006, 09:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lono

So you think that fingernail tackled him? Just because I touch you and you run 3 or 4 yards dive and fumble doesnt mean your down by contact.

I believe the call was made in accordance with the rule.

Being touched by your opponent on your way to the ground consitutes a tackle in the NFL rule book. You can debate the way the rule is written, but the call was accurate.

Lono · 02-06-2006, 09:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jspchief

I believe the call was made in accordance with the rule.

Being touched by your opponent on your way to the ground consitutes a tackle in the NFL rule book. You can debate the way the rule is written, but the call was accurate.

You are right. I was just wanting to throw that into the debate of "ticky tacky" calls that people are mad about. I will say I cant see how a corner goes up with a reciever battles for a ball picks it off and falls down then gets back up and runs. By the rule book he was touched so he should also be down, but ive seen that scenario happen many times where he was not called down by contact.

**Bugeater** · 02-06-2006, 09:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arc

You can sell a lot more merchandise if an east coast team wins, than if a small market in a distant outpost wins.

I thought the NFL was better than that, but that's what it's looking like.

02-06-2006, 01:14 AM
Taco John Sapere Aude Join Date: Jun 2001 Casino cash: $537937	FoxSports: Seattle was the better team... Refs were far from super in this one Kevin Hench / FOXSports.com This is the space where I get to crow about the frightening precision of my Super Bowl prediction. Where I get to remind everyone that I guaranteed the Steelers would win the title after they beat the Colts. That they were the only championship-caliber team among the final four. That they would dismantle the Broncos in Denver and waylay whomever the NFC sent at them. This is the space where I get to wag a finger at my colleague Ian O'Connor, with whom I'd waged a dueling columns battle of opposing prognostication. He picked the Seahawks and made a very strong case for them. This is the space where I get to say, I told ya so. But I won't. I can't. I've never felt so empty being right. I feel dirty. I wish I'd been wrong. The Steelers did not deserve to win this game. They were not the better team. O'Connor was right. Seattle was the better team. So, Paul Tagliabue, how does a team lose when it outgains an opponent by 57 yards, controls time of possession and wins the turnover battle? Like a crazed CIA analyst running through the halls of Langley screaming into open offices about some impending calamity, I've been shrieking hysterically about the terrible officiating in the NFL and warning that some day the brutal calls were going to affect the outcome of the Super Bowl. That some day was Sunday. Every single questionable, marginal or outright bad call went against the Seahawks. Their first three big plays were all wiped out by penalty calls. On their second drive, Darrell Jackson caught an 18-yard pass on 3rd-and-6 that would have given Seattle a first down at the 23. But Chris Gray was called for holding James Farrior. When Farrior pushed upfield, Gray did hook him with his right arm, and Farrior went down. When referee Bill Levy flagged Gray, it was a bad omen for the Seahawks. Instead of being on the edge of the red zone, they came away without any points. On their third drive, the Seahawks looked to take a 7-0 lead when Jackson separated from Chris Hope in the end zone and Matt Hasselbeck delivered a perfect strike to his outside shoulder. The back judge looked uncertain —sound familiar, Patriots fans? — then finally jerked his flag out and called offensive pass interference to wipe out the touchdown. The replay showed receiver and defender hand-fighting with Jackson getting the slightest push into Hope's chest before turning to catch the ball. ABC's John Madden thought the call was dubious. FOX analyst and all-time great offensive lineman Brian Baldinger had no doubts, calling it "absolutely horrendous" on his FOXSports.com Super Bowl Instant Analysis. ESPN's Steve Young and Michael Irvin also had no uncertainty, dismissing the call as ticky-tack and insisting the Seahawks got robbed of a TD. Then came a huge call on the first play of the second quarter. Peter Warrick ripped off a 33-yard punt return to give Seattle the ball at the Steelers 46. But Etric Pruitt was called for holding. How clear was it? Well, Madden thought the call was for Pruitt holding the gunner at the beginning of the play. It wasn't. The flag came in during the runback and it looked pretty minor. Another example of an official searching to make a call. So despite totally dominating the first 20 minutes of the game, the Seahawks led only 3-0. Then came Pittsbugh's first touchdown. Whether you think Roethlisberger broke the plane of the goal line seems to depend on which team you were rooting for. The odd part was the line judge seemed to have determined that Big Ben had come up short as he ran in from the sideline. Since Roethlisberger had been pushed back well short of the goal line I don't know what he could have seen as he got closer to the pile that would have made him change his mind. But up went the arms. Had Roethlisberger been ruled short of the plane, that call would no doubt have stood too. But you figure the Black and Gold would have pounded it in from the two-inch line on fourth down so there's not that much here for Seattle fans to complain about except for the continuing storyline that every single call was going the Steelers' way. And the worst was yet to come. The Seahawks were on the verge of taking a 17-14 lead early in the fourth quarter when officiating disaster struck. Hasselbeck had drilled a pass down the seam to Jerramy Stevens to set up first-and-goal at the one when suddenly Levy appeared in the middle of the screen to call the play back on account of holding on Sean Locklear. No less a source than newly-minted Hall of Famer John Madden came right out and said it was a bad call. This penalty was beyond ticky-tack. Baldinger called it "another terrible call" and added that the Steelers were offsides on the play. It was yet another official searching for a call, desperate to throw his flag, yearning to impact the action. Why, why, oh, why? That's 14 points the officials simply took away from the Seahawks. Incredible. After a sack, Hasselbeck threw a pick and then was penalized 15 yards for making the tackle. I'm not kidding. The same thing happened in the Indy-Pittsburgh game in the regular season. It's like the officials become so discombobulated during the change of possession that they just randomly start throwing flags. The call was that Hasselbeck had thrown an illegal block below the waist on the return. Never mind that Hasselbeck wasn't trying to block anybody and did, in fact, make the tackle. Just another terrible call that cannot be reviewed in Paul Tagliabue's NFL. The Steelers took quick advantage of their enhanced field position and just like that it was 21-10 Pittsburgh when it should have been 17-14 Seattle. But the stripes weren't done. First, they blew a fumble call on the field — of course against Seattle — before overturning it after replay. Then, with the Steelers trying to run out the clock, Levy granted Roethlisberger a timeout, even though the play clock clearly read zero before the quarterback signaled for time. It ended up being the final bad call in Seattle's coffin. As Madden and Al Michaels watched the replay they shared a laugh about a similar bad non-call in an earlier playoff game between the Bears and Panthers. This is what it has come to: Announcers comparing the bad calls happening before them to the bad calls from earlier rounds of the playoffs. Is this really what the NFL wants? Did the refs get this Ben Roethlisberger touchdown call right? It's certainly up for debate. (Elaine Thompson / Associated Press) With Cris Collinsworth lobbying for pass interference to be eligible for review on Inside the NFL after New England got jobbed in Denver; Joey Porter inveighing against the league after the game in Indy; Young and Irvin railing at halftime of the Super Bowl; Baldinger being spot-on with his Instant Analysis critique of the officials; and Madden and Michaels wondering aloud about the officiating during the game ... is anybody in the league office listening? Or can we pretty much count on next year's playoffs being dominated by the officials too? Was that Mike Holmgren or Mike Martz? The one area where most people agreed Seattle might have an edge was on the sidelines. Mike Holmgren was supposed to be a better game coach than Bill Cowher. But a funny thing happened to Holmgren at the end of the first half (and again at the end of the game): he became Mike Martz. Not once, but twice, Holmgren basically ran the clock out on himself. One other decision Holmgren made should haunt him. After Mack Strong did a shameful job of not stretching out for a first down — on a tackle by a cornerback no less — the Seahawks faced 4th-and-inches at their own 26 with a 3-0 lead in the second quarter. The situation reminded me of when Bill Belichick went for it in a similar situation against the Colts in the playoffs three years ago, made it and sent a statement. Despite having an MVP tailback who was 16-for-16 on 3rd-and-1 this season, Holmgren went the safe route and punted. The Steelers scored and Seattle never led again. Darrell Jackson, what might have been After tying a Super Bowl record with five catches in the first quarter, Darrell Jackson was shut out. But, oh, what might have been. If not for a holding call, a marginal offensive pass interference penalty and a momentary lapse of knowing where he was on the field, Darrell Jackson could have had eight catches in the first half for 124 yards and two touchdowns. As it turned out, his five catches for 50 yards will be easily forgotten. Joey Porter vs. Jerramy Stevens Joey Porter was pretty invisible. Jerramy Stevens wished he was. Despite scoring a touchdown, he had three huge drops, two of which were drive killers when the Seahawks were marching deep in Steelers territory. Porter may have had only three tackles and no sacks, but the "soft" label he hung on Stevens sure seemed to fit as the 6-foot-7 tight end short-armed several passes and seemed to be hearing footsteps all night. Kevin Hench is supervising producer of The Sports List on Fox Sports Net. http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/5310192
Posts: 79,737

02-06-2006, 08:15 AM	#31
Dr. Van Halen Starter Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Missoula, MT Casino cash: $10005005	I think what bothers me most is that this is the Super Bowl officiating squad. They earned the right to call this game through a process of performance evaluation. This is supposedly the BEST crew. That is frightening.
Posts: 824

02-06-2006, 08:25 AM	#32
Bowser sorta mod-ish Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: KC North Casino cash: $-108384	Of course the NFL wanted the Steelers to win. One for the thumb; Bettis retiring after a Hall of Fame career in his hometown; Cowher solidifying his position as a HoF coach; on and on. The refs should give their paychecks to charity. There was a debate on another thread about the pass interference on D. Jackson, and I thought it was a crap call. How many times do you see that call on a touchdown pass? And if Jackson was Terrell Owens, that TD stands. Not to mention the personal foul Hasselbeck picked up for tackling Ike Taylor, and Jackson being ruled out of bounds on another TD pass when he clearly kicked the pylon. Horrible. However, all of that being said, Seattle blew it. Two missed field goals and numerous dropped passes did them in. Matt Hasselbeck is this years version of Jake Delhomme from a couple of years ago.
Posts: 106,709

02-06-2006, 08:34 AM	#33
kpic Starter Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Delaware Casino cash: $-1997793	I would never (prior to this years playoffs) think there is a conspiracy in the NFL to favor a certain team over another (and I highly doubt most conspiracies by nature) but while watching the Indy Vs Pitt. playoff game I think most of would agree it seemed as though NFL was trying their best to lean the odds in favor of Indy and Pittsburgh was able to overcome those odds. I was not rooting for either team but after watching last nights game I will always feel that the NFL leaned the odds in Pittsburgh’s favor and Seattle was unable to overcome them as Pittsburgh did earlier against Indy. It is a sad day for me to be an NFL fan that I will now think one way or another instead of letting the players play the NFL will attempt to put a "storybook" scenario to certain games. Somehow I feel like I did when I was a kid and wrestling finally came out and admitted it was just a planned outcome and now I realize that I may someday in my lifetime see the NFL as "Sports Entertainment".
Posts: 582

02-06-2006, 08:52 AM	#34
Lono Starter Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Mo Casino cash: $9903836	[QUOTE=arc]I can't believe I agree with TJ. Instead, after the catch at the one is taken away and Hasselback gets flagged for making the tackle after the desparation pass that's picked on third down, the game was over and it was snooze fest after that. This is my take on the Hasselback block penalty. After watching it several times you can clearly see he was attempting to take out the lead blocker. The blocker kind of jumped to the side a little bit to keep his legs from getting cut. Hasselback just got lucky by making the tackle. He was attempting to take out the lead blocker by his legs which is illegal. That is why the flag got thrown.
Posts: 812

02-06-2006, 08:55 AM	#36
jynni Starter Join Date: Oct 2003 Casino cash: $-1253669	I'm actually quite shocked - while watching the game I didn't think the officiating was that bad. Sure the OPI on Seattle was a tad tickytac (the official was not undecided though - he waited to see if the receiver caught the ball). OPI was also called on Pitt at another point in the game and I thought it was just as tickytac. Ben did cross the LOS on his touchdown. Remember, all that has to happen for a touchdown is for the nose of the ball to pass the front of the goalline. It did that much, even if it didn't completely cross it.
Posts: 884

02-06-2006, 08:57 AM	#37
Bob Dole King Shit of **** Mountain Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Texarkana, Texas Casino cash: $-1204563	Bob Dole is pretty sure he remembers an "illegal block" personal foul call on an interception tackle going against KC in the recent past.
Posts: 51,574

02-06-2006, 08:59 AM	#38
Lono Starter Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Mo Casino cash: $9903836	It doesnt matter if he kicked the pylon or not. He had never established himself in bounds. Touching the pylon only comes into play when you already have possesion. He clearly had one foot down and the other out of bounds. Another thing if Jackson's push off wasnt right in front of the official no it wouldnt have been called. But the rules say he can not extend his arm. He CLEARLY extended his arm to get seperation. When you do something like that right in front of the official its going to get called. The ref was trying to get the flag out immediately just couldnt find it. Of course fox sports didnt want to see that. Another thing no one wants to talk about Hasselback's fumble? Are you kidding me he got touched by a finger nail before he went down. He fumbled the football. Steelers ball. Seattle had a ton of chances to score but couldnt put it in time after time. Dropped balls and their defense giving up the big play lost them the game, not the officials.
Posts: 812

02-06-2006, 09:06 AM	#41
Eleazar Beyond the Rapids Join Date: May 2003 Location: Langley, VA Casino cash: $-370000	The calls were definitely slanted toward Pittsburgh. Seattle still had a chance to win and didn't, but if they don't take the TD off the board or call the invisible holding penalty, the game would have been a lot different.
Posts: 80,659