The rule, as currently written, is not a good rule.....and we all know it to be even after the (example) Calvin Johnson catch mandated such a rule. There's a myriad of problems that crop up when interpreting anything to "the letter of the law" (ie" see our current tax laws). After all, anything being interpreted (either on the field or in the replay booth) by humans....who are at best, flawed...is always subject to further scrutiny. We all have our biases, likes and dislikes (ie: see Pyramider as exhibit A) and we act upon them daily whether we realize it or not....it's how we are. Question....what was influencing Dean Blandino this past Sunday?
Before we address that, back to the play itself....the call
on the field was a catch. Once called into question, the job of the replay booth was to find the irrefutable evidence to overturn the call that's made on the field. Cowboy "beer goggles" or not, I do not feel he saw the required evidence that was necessary to negate the call as viewed by the ref who was a mere 6 feet from the play with a full view of what had just transpired. Those watching all saw what he and the rest of the world saw....a great catch by a great athlete (not to mention an ice-in-the-veins throw by one Tony Romo on that 4th and 2 play.)
Those who are Cowboy-haters take great delight in the fact this call was overturned; they're totally convinced it wasn't a catch and Blandino's decision gives them the backing to claim "good call", screw you, Cowboys. However, had the play stood as called on the field, it's highly unlikely those same people would feel some huge injustice had been made or if there was Cowboy Conspiracy taking place. They'd chalk it up as "not enough evidence to overturn the call" and move on with the rest of the game. (Let's be real....this was a completely different situation than the blatant holding / PI in the Dallas-Detroit game the previous week, but were they connected? Was Blandino, by virtue of this decision, was he penalizing the Cowboys with a make up call? Who knows....)
That said, Cowboy fans, on the other hand, are still having a tough time moving on from this.....all we see is a marvelously gifted athlete who extended vertically 13 feet (approximate height where the ball was caught) combined with a super-human effort to extend the ball into the end zone for a score. Cowboy fans see the ball shifted from two hands to one (the left hand) and if anything, while making "a football move" (three feet / steps down) was then downed by the defender at the 1 1/2 yard line....resulting in what should have been, first and goal.
By the way....back to the imperfection of humans making critical calls when necessary.....league officials are acknowledging (behind closed doors) the Josh Cribbs (punt return) fumble in the following game was a blown call (by the replay booth official, btw)......the ball was never actually gathered in and "possessed" (like a reception is supposed to be) and should have been Denver's ball at the 30.
Watch the league over the following months as they "attempt" to clean this rule up even further, if that's even possible......with such talented receivers in the NFL as Megatron, Dez not to mention the newest sensation, Odell Beckham Jr, who the best is yet to come, they best find a way to bring clarity to an issue before such a play occurs late in the fourth quarter of a play off game. Oooops.....too late.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Boltfan
Because of the way the rule is written. Pyramiders hate for the cowboy's not withstanding, the rule for being down and it not being a fumble is different than the rule for a completed catch.
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