Super Bowl Refs Don't Know "new" Rules

[Chiefnj2]

from profootballtalk.com

Confusion continues about refs signaling Patriots’ ineligible receivers

Posted by Michael David Smith on January 30, 2015, 7:07 AM EST

blandino
AP

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said on Thursday morning that the NFL has instructed its officials to use a new signal in the Super Bowl to inform defensive players which offensive players are eligible receivers and which offensive players are ineligible. That came as news to Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

“I haven’t heard anything about that, so we’ll see what happens,” Belichick told pool reporter Jarrett Bell at the Patriots’ Thursday practice. “I’ll check it out.”

NFL head of officiating Dean Blandino said there’s nothing new for Belichick to check out: Carroll misunderstood, and there is no new signal. It’s unclear where Carroll got that idea, as he said on Thursday morning that he was informed by the league that the officials were changing the way they officiate when the Patriots run trick plays.

“The new signal is the referee will point to the player that has the eligible number and he’ll signal that he is not eligible. That’s the new thing. They’ve never done that before,” Carroll said.

So where did Carroll get that idea? It’s unclear, but Super Bowl referee Bill Vinovich seemed to have the same idea. Vinovich and Blandino had an awkward moment in front of the press when Blandino told Vinovich that he shouldn’t tell the defense which ineligible receivers not to cover, something that came as news to Vinovich.

The Patriots’ trick plays surprised the defenses of the Ravens and Colts in their playoff games. Those plays also seem to have confused everyone else in the NFL. Even the officiating department.

[Amnorix]

Looks like the signal is to point at the ineligible player and make an "X" type signal with the arms, sort of like an incomplete pass.

The confusion seems to be (1) whether this is "new" (Carroll said it was, but Blandino said it was used in the AFCCG), and (2) whether the refs can/should/will tell the other team not to cover the guy.

That made for an embarrassing exchange between Blandino and Vinovich at yesterday's presser. It's what Vinovich did during the Ravens game, but Blandino said they wouldnt' do it at the SB. Which makes sense. Why would the NFL tell the defense who to cover and who not to cover? They say who is ELIGIBLE and then the defense does whatever the hell it wants.

[Sully]

So where did Carroll get that idea? It’s unclear, but Super Bowl referee Bill Vinovich seemed to have the same idea. Vinovich and Blandino had an awkward moment in front of the press when Blandino told Vinovich that he shouldn’t tell the defense which ineligible receivers not to cover, something that came as news to Vinovich.



That's bullshit. Pointing out which player not to cover? C'mon.
Alignment rules aren't that hard to follow, especially in the NFL. Let's expect these professional players to understand the concept of a covered player, and not spoon feed them the formations.

[kccrow]

I don't see the confusion to begin with. Whenever a player comes into the game as an eligible receiver he reports that to the officials who then report that to the defense.

There are alignment rules that can then make that reported player ineligible (even if he reported as eligible), but that's not for the refs nor the Patriots to have to spell out to the opposing defense.

If the defense doesn't recognize alignments and doesn't recall who reported eligible, then that's their own damn problem.

[TribalElder]

Seahawks are gonna roll the cheatriots and their sideshow playbook

[Bowser]

http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view3/1751530/belichick-laughing-o.gif