Besides, the NFL has a clear conflict of interest in backing up the replacement officials. For the l

Using replacement officials to work NFL games for the first three weeks of the season went from a danger area, to grave concern over the past week, and finally escalated into a colossal disaster vacation rentals in outer banks Monday night .
Maybe the Seattle vacation rentals in outer banks Seahawks beating the Green Bay Packers 14-12 on the game's final play, courtesy of a disputed 24-yard touchdown pass by Russell Wilson that should vacation rentals in outer banks have never been allowed, will be the impetus for NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to end this charade and reach a labor agreement with the union officials.
The brouhaha was triggered by Wilson throwing a pass toward the left corner of the end zone into a sea of bodies, which ended with referee Wayne Elliott awarding a touchdown to Seattle receiver Golden Tate after the play was reviewed.
Clearly, replays showed that the ruling was a joke. First of all, even though pass interference is rarely called in a Hail Mary-type situation, Tate blatantly shoved Packers' defender Sam Shields away from him prior to the ball's arrival. The ball nestled into the chest of Green Bay defensive back M.D. Jennings, who established control as Tate was reaching in with one arm from underneath him.
For the review to not be overturned, the NFL's interpretation has to be that Jennings and Tate made a simultaneous catch, thus ruling in the offense's favor. But replays show Jennings, who has leverage with both arms wrapped around vacation rentals in outer banks the ball, having established possession early and Tate reaches in to get a hand on the ball.
By NFL rule, which is subject to an eye-of-the-beholder interpretation, it doesn't have the look of a simultaneous catch. The problem is, confusion is created when two officials closest to the play make opposite rulings.
Side judge Lance Easley tepidly signaled touchdown, while back judge Derrick Rhone-Dunn comes in a second earlier and waves his arms, as if to signal a touchback. A wrestling match in a dogpile of players ensued, which only added to the confusion.
As Sports Illustrated's Peter King pointed out, there was no conference among the officials on the field to discuss what they witnessed, which is a rarity in that situation. Instead, the play went to review with replay official Howard Slavin and officiating supervisor Phil Luckett, both of whom are NFL regulars, not replacements.
After the review, Elliott announced the touchdown ruling on the field was upheld as Seahawks coach Pete Carroll raised his arms in triumph a few feet away. But another problem vacation rentals in outer banks that went largely unnoticed is Elliott never made clear that a TD had been ruled on the field until after they went to review.
The NFL issued a statement Tuesday that basically upheld the ruling, though vacation rentals in outer banks it did acknowledge that Tate should have been called for offensive pass interference. But since that isn't subject vacation rentals in outer banks to review, it's a hallow concession on the NFL's part because they know the call can't be reversed due to a penalty that was missed.
Besides, the NFL has a clear conflict of interest in backing up the replacement officials. For the league to say that the Packers were robbed would give even more ammunition to the union officials, who are still in negotiations with the NFL for a labor agreement and better pension benefits.
The bottom line is there's no defending the call. Absolutely none. The officials not only misinterpreted a judgment call, just as they did in missing Tate's pushoff, they compounded a bad interpretation by not even huddling to talk about what they saw. Instead, they went right to the review, which determined that indisputable evidence wasn't there to overturn it.
I spoke Tuesday with a long-time college official who also works in off-field capacities with the Arena League and NFL. While he admitted he didn't see the controversial play live, he did say it's common protocol that when two officials have different versions of what they saw to get together and talk about it, both among themselves and with the rest of the officiating crew. That never happened Monday night prior to the play's review, and that's on the replacement officials.
Replay after replay revealed with unmistakable clarity that Jennings should have been awarded an interception, even if you overlook Tate's vacation rentals in outer banks obvious shove with both hands to give himself a better chance to touch the ball.
You can bet NFL talk will be dominated by this black eye until a labor agreement is reached with union officials. This controversy figures to be the No. 1 topic with the national media, and the overwhelming immediate reaction was negativity directed at the NFL for allowing it to happen. A report by ESPN indicated that little progress vacation rentals in outer banks was made despite four days of negotiations, but it'll be interesting to see if this wrong call will be a game-changer.
It marked vacation rentals in outer banks the third prime-time NFL game in a span of a week that was marred by controversy. The previous Monday Night Football game between the Denver Broncos and Atlanta Falcons dragged on with one dispute after another. Both Denver head coach John Fox and defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio were fined by the NFL, $30,000 and $25,000, respectively, vacation rentals in outer banks for their sideline actions against the officiating.
Sunday night, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick was so incensed about how their game with the Baltimore Ravens was officiated, which ended with a Ravens' game-winning field goal, that he put his hand on an official as he exited the field. Belichick's actions vacation rentals in outer banks are likely to merit some kind of punishment by Goodell.
All of this rancor over replacement officials and a bad call altering the outcome of a game was inevitable. When you allow referees who have no experience working at the NFL level to pinch-hit for those that do, it stands to reason that there's going to be more disputes. Complicating matters is that NFL players have no working relationship with these referees, most of whom have worked only at the small-college level or other leagues that bear no resemblance to the speed of the NFL game.
Hate to say it, but the NFL got what it deserved vacation rentals in outer banks with this botched outcome. It took a huge risk by holding firm on its stance with more qualified officials, and now Goodell and his empire have been burned.
vacation rentals in outer banks Packers coach Mike McCarthy opened his post-game vacation rentals in outer banks press conference by saying he wasn't going to talk about the officials. He later alluded to the game-ending controversy, saying: "I know it's been a wild weekend in the NFL. We're part of it now." He also had this comment: "Very hard to swallow."
No question, Monday night's debacle at CenturyLink vacation rentals in outer banks Field in Seattle put an entirely new spin on the escalating controversy of using replacement officials. Now a team has been robbed of a victory, which could ultimately cost the Packers a playoff berth, and that should be a tipping point for a labor agreement to get done.
The ball is in Goodell's court now. Suspect officiating has finally cost a team a victory. He can stubbornly keep drawing a line in the sand. Or he can do what's right by ending this ugly spectacle, because the NFL is officially looking like a national laughingstock.
The NFL is selling an inferior product at top dollar cost. Much more of this and they will have a fan strike on their hands. What is happening is a farce! The NFL should be ashamed! They are taking a great game and turning them into a travesty. They won't give the officials what they want? This is the only professional sport that doesn't have fulltime, fully paid officials. Why? Because the league, the owners are too tight fisted.
The Packers and Patriots were both victimized this week by some of the worse calls in NFL history, but I do not feel sorry for them a bit! Both franchises have benefited repeatedly over the years by bad calls made by the regular officials. Remember the "tuck" incident? Remember the '96 AFC Championship game, when the Jags got screwed? I don't know if this is irony or justice but...........it's vacation rentals in outer banks funny.
vacation rentals in outer banks In week one, the Seahawks were the beneficiaries of a bad call that allowed vacation rentals in outer banks them to getin an extra play that resulted in a win over the Cards. vacation rentals in outer banks The refs gave them an extra time out, so this isn't the first time that a game went the wrong way because vacation rentals in outer banks of the referees. (I am a Hawks fan from the time they were first announced in the Seattle Times as a franchise, walked on the floor of the Kingdome before the Hawks did as well.)
Who is to say the "real refs" would have reacted any differently! The play went to review upstairs with a retired "real ref" upstairs making the decision and a supervisor on the field advising the crew of upstarts.
Any referee will admit that one of the toughest calls to make at any level is the "simultaneous vacation rentals in outer banks catch". vacation rentals in outer banks And to compound the issue all three levels (high school, college and Pro) have a slightly different twist to the definition of a simultaneous catch.
What we are seeing vacation rentals in outer banks is the NFL is being talked about in corners of the country that may not discuss the 'brand'. This labor dispute has created so much controversy and generated so much energy that the NFL and their sponsors are raking in extra attention beyond their wildest dreams. Before any GM or owner gets too aggressive in their desire to see 'real refs' working the game, they may want to recheck the ratings and find the 'Q-factor' higher than ever.
@Gene I know its your job to write but let's give the replacement ref's a break. I say they should just all get together and walk off and let people like you and all the other fan that know so much about football and the rules get out there and do the job.
Sure, let's give the replacement officials a break ... a permanent break from the NFL positions! Stop whining? While we continue to get an inferior product passed off to us? Yeah, sure! My grandmother could do a better job of officiating, and she's not even alive! Furthermore, the replay system once again failed to do its job, as it was obvious that Jennings had intercepted the ball and had clearly hit the ground with possession before Tate got his hands on that ball!
This is NOT a matter of whether anyone