Football NFL announces Replay Changes

**notorious** · 11-18-2008, 07:52 AM

About Time!!!

NFL to look into improvements for replay

More NFL Videos NEW YORK (TICKER) —In the wake of a bizarre finish to Sunday’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and San Diego Chargers, the NFL on Monday said it is looking to take steps to prevent a similar officiating mistake.

The league also issued a statement Monday to clarify the officials’ incorrect ruling on final play of the game, which reversed an apparent touchdown by Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu in the Steelers’ 11-10 victory.

While the score would not have affected the outcome, it resulted in chaos on the field and among gamblers worldwide as the officials first ruled it a touchdown and then reversed the decision due to an illegal forward pass.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in an e-mail to PA SportsTicker that the league is having discussions “with the Competition Committee potential administrative improvements for replay that would help to prevent this type of mistake in the future.”

On the play in question, which caused an estimated $64 million swing in winning wagers on the contest, San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers flipped a short pass to LaDainian Tomlinson, who turned and flipped a lateral to wide receiver Chris Chambers.

Chamber then attempted to lateral backward but his errant throw bounced off the turf and was scooped up by Polamalu, who carried it into the end zone for an apparent 17-10 lead.

However, as the teams lined up for the extra point, the replay official called for a review of the play.

Following the initial review, referee Scott Green announced the ruling on the field stood and that the touchdown counted. However, the referees huddled again and determined that one of the laterals was an illegal forward pass, which would have ended the play and the game.

The problem, as Green explained after the game and the NFL expounded upon in its statement, was that the officials applied the ruling to the incorrect lateral.

“The officiating crew mistakenly determined that the backward pass that Polamalu legally recovered and returned for the touchdown was the pass that was reversed in replay to being forward and illegal,” the league said in the statement. “Therefore, the crew ruled that the ball was dead when it hit the ground and the play was over. (The actual illegal forward pass - Tomlinson to Chambers - did not hit the ground and therefore the play is allowed to continue.)

“If the situation had been handled properly, the defense (Pittsburgh) would have declined the penalty for an illegal forward pass from Tomlinson to Chambers and taken the touchdown.”

RJ Bell of Pregame.com, a Las Vegas-based sports information service, estimated that $100 million was bet on the contest, with approximately 66 percent of that money backing the Steelers, who were a five-point favorite.

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11-18-2008, 07:52 AM	Topic Starter
notorious Supporter Join Date: May 2005 Location: Who knows? Casino cash: $-914116	NFL announces Replay Changes About Time!!! NFL to look into improvements for replay More NFL Videos NEW YORK (TICKER) —In the wake of a bizarre finish to Sunday’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and San Diego Chargers, the NFL on Monday said it is looking to take steps to prevent a similar officiating mistake. The league also issued a statement Monday to clarify the officials’ incorrect ruling on final play of the game, which reversed an apparent touchdown by Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu in the Steelers’ 11-10 victory. While the score would not have affected the outcome, it resulted in chaos on the field and among gamblers worldwide as the officials first ruled it a touchdown and then reversed the decision due to an illegal forward pass. NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in an e-mail to PA SportsTicker that the league is having discussions “with the Competition Committee potential administrative improvements for replay that would help to prevent this type of mistake in the future.” On the play in question, which caused an estimated $64 million swing in winning wagers on the contest, San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers flipped a short pass to LaDainian Tomlinson, who turned and flipped a lateral to wide receiver Chris Chambers. Chamber then attempted to lateral backward but his errant throw bounced off the turf and was scooped up by Polamalu, who carried it into the end zone for an apparent 17-10 lead. However, as the teams lined up for the extra point, the replay official called for a review of the play. Following the initial review, referee Scott Green announced the ruling on the field stood and that the touchdown counted. However, the referees huddled again and determined that one of the laterals was an illegal forward pass, which would have ended the play and the game. The problem, as Green explained after the game and the NFL expounded upon in its statement, was that the officials applied the ruling to the incorrect lateral. “The officiating crew mistakenly determined that the backward pass that Polamalu legally recovered and returned for the touchdown was the pass that was reversed in replay to being forward and illegal,” the league said in the statement. “Therefore, the crew ruled that the ball was dead when it hit the ground and the play was over. (The actual illegal forward pass - Tomlinson to Chambers - did not hit the ground and therefore the play is allowed to continue.) “If the situation had been handled properly, the defense (Pittsburgh) would have declined the penalty for an illegal forward pass from Tomlinson to Chambers and taken the touchdown.” RJ Bell of Pregame.com, a Las Vegas-based sports information service, estimated that $100 million was bet on the contest, with approximately 66 percent of that money backing the Steelers, who were a five-point favorite. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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