NFL officials channeled the Big 10 in the SB thus capping off a magnificently terrible year.
The "hitting a defensless player' call against the Rams who hadd all of the momentum with NE 3 and 20 inside their own 10 yd line and stuffed for a loss changed the complexion of the game - at least in the first half. i counted 10 obvious mistakes of various sorts.
Replies to: NFL officials channeled the Big 10 in the SB thus capping off a magnificently terrible year.
Here is the rule
This is one of many judgement calls that can or not be penalized. The player safety mindset behind rules like this results in the officials getting guidance that if it is "close" penalize it in order to establish the spirit of the rule. Aside: thought the hit on the QB going out of bounds probably should have gotten a flag based on this logic.
"A receiver attempting to catch a pass who has not had time to clearly become a runner. If the player is capable of avoiding or warding off the impending contact of an opponent, he is no longer a defenseless player"
In the context above looked to be a "good" call albeit in the "good old days" this and the QB situation would have been good defensive football.
This link explains what a "defenseless player" looks like in a variety of situations: https://operations.nfl.com/the-rules/nfl-video-rulebook/defenseless-player/
Another aside: Would love to see a TV broadcast in which they had a graphic with the rule and how it is to be enforced ending with "now let's see the play in slow motion" (with no commentary describing what is being shown) ... and then back to discussing the play with someone who actually knows the rules and what the NFL (ACC or whatever) have told their officials about applying it.
But you know what is funny about that second part. If you have to watch the player catch the ball,
make a move and then you can hit him. How is any defender going to execute "perfect timing" when the ball and the defender arrive at the same time.
My take
Don't want to defend the rule but ...
Think if you asked the folk who wrote the rule their answer would be "we don't want this type of contact to happen ... but if it does it will be a penalty."
For what is worth I look at this type of play like a punter returner trying to catch (and not fumble) the ball in traffic where in only seems logical that there be "room" before he gets hit. As with many newer rules this penalizes the D but it does reflect the general mindset that the defender has to play the ball vice the man.
Blame the rule, not the officials, for that call
That said, the stupid rules changes coupled with incompetent officials made the entire season horrible.
Except that the officials usually don't call that BS, and they also called Sullivan for holding and
I am sure that they could find some rule to defend that BS call as well.
Another egregious call was when they caled the critical 3rd down catch by the Rams a reception on the sideline when he obviously had only one foot in bounds.
BVZ, I would not say that the catch by Woods being out of bounds was as obvious as you claim
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OLs hold on every play. The call on Sullivan was unusual
as I said, the officials are horrible.
"The Worst People Win Again"
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Link: https://deadspin.com/the-worst-people-win-again-1832321959
Wild to me that the MVP had to sit four games to start the season for PED’s
It’s not even a story. If it’s baseball he’s gotta sit half the season and is ineligible for post season play.
Forgot about that.
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Me too. I was thinking, Wow he looks like a roid monkey!
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That call was huge and total bullshit. Los Angeles had them on the ropes at that point.
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A complete horseshit call was what
Put them in SB to begin with. NO and Brees would have much better match up.
True but that is a different game. Yesterday is the call we are talking about and it was horrible.
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Yes, of course, but they're mutually exclusive. One doesn't excuse the other
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It's just a bad overall entertainment product
Players aren't as good, schemes are more vanilla, officiating is terrible. Brady is the best ever, but even he is past his peak as evidenced by the fact his team scored only 13 points. The rest of the league is just worse.
The NFL is in decline. Ratings will continue to plummet...as a result so will player/coach salaries. It will have an effect on college football, but hard to tell how or what it means for ND.
The product is generally mediocre but I like hard hitting defensive intense games. Mahones is one
player who could really help the league.
ratings up 5% in 2018
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Even so, still down 14% in past 3 years including this uptick, and SB was least watched in 10 years.
Not yesterday though, ratings down. Headline called game Super Bore but I happen to like games
that are close throughout where the game is great defensively, and very physical rather than ping pong up and down the field offense performances.
In order for "ratings (to) continue to plummet" they need to actually be going down
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