1st Quarter | 1:46 | Giants 10-3 | Packers ball | 1st & 10 @ NYG 39 | video (at 1:21)

We are going to deconstruct the big call from Sunday’s NFC divisional playoff game, not to defend it, but to answer the questions surrounding it and the decisions that were made.

As the Packers were driving to answer a go-ahead touchdown by the Giants  in the first quarter, quarterback Aaron Rodgers completed a pass to receiver Greg Jennings. Jennings turned up field and gained about three yards when the ball came loose.

The loose ball was immediately scooped up by Giants cornerback Kenny Phillips. The play continues live, so Philips runs about 12 yards before going out of bounds.

(1) Keeping the play alive. In the live camera angle and all of the replay angles aired on television, veteran head linesman George Hayward and side judge Larry Rose follow the action as Phillips returns the apparent fumble. The audience was whisked away to commercial, not knowing that a conference developed between the officials.

(2) Post-play discussion. The more that instant replay has become entrenched in the game has lead to a new officiating anomaly: let the play go and sort it out in the end. There is some merit to that approach, as whistles do not have erasers, but a call-by-committee can always be enacted after the fact.

The only other official that could be involved in the play is the back judge, Scott Helverson. His position, unseen in the replays, would be roughly the center of the field, and probably 10 to 20 yards downfield, so that he doesn’t get passed like a stalled car. (There exists an outside  possibility that the field judge could have been involved, but he is patrolling the opposite sideline from the play.)

Probably Helverson saw something that gave him the impression that Jennings had a knee down prior to the fumble, or he would not have tried to appeal to the other two covering officials. In the end, the three officials came to an agreement that the play is down by contact prior to the fumble occurring.

(3) Why not just let replay sort it out? Replay is a tool to correct mistakes, not a crutch to buttress up flaky or indecisive calls. They must make decisions based on their observations in real time, and not what would be convenient for the replay system to sort out. Therefore, an official who, armed only with his observation, must make a decisive call (conferring with others if necessary) and stick with it. All of the officials that get playoff assignments are graded on their decisiveness in making calls, in addition to their on-field accuracy. Also, for an official to rely on the ability for a team to challenge a call deprives that team of one of their precious challenges.

(4) Giants challenge. Giants coach Tom Coughlin saw what we all saw from our favorite football-watching chair: Jennings lost control of the ball prior to being down. The challenge, had it been ruled in favor of the Giants, would have given them the ball, but the 12-yard runback by Phillips would not count, even though the officials originally let the play continue.

(5) Replay review. Up to this point, three officials were involved in the call. Now, referee Bill Leavy, in consultation with the replay official, will intervene on his sole judgement of the video. Leavy is allowed to observe one aspect of the play in one angle, and compare it to another aspect in a different angle. But, he only has 60 seconds to do so.

Remember, Leavy wasn’t covering the play, so some of that 60 seconds goes to getting the first visuals of the tackle.

To rule down by contact, the ball carrier must have a body part other than his hand or foot touching the ground while in possession of the ball. While the ball clearly came out prior to Jennings’ knee hitting, Leavy apparently focused on his shin. These are the angles he was served up:

Leavy should have noticed the position of the ball carrier’s elbow, because that could tell him when the ball was out in angle A and when the shin was down in angle C. The ball definitely came out prior to the shin contacting the ground.

(6) The call. In replay, the rule is that there must be indisputable visual evidence that the call on the field is to be overturned. If Leavy does not piece the angles together in time to make a decision, then he must leave the call as is.

As Leavy enters the field to announce his judgment, Helverson, the back judge, is seen walking with Leavy. Therefore, he must have been part of the original call.

After reviewing the play, the ruling on the field stands.

Had Leavy seen a body part on the ground prior to the ball out, he would have said the call was “confirmed.” Because he said it “stands,” it means that Leavy did not see conclusive evidence or his allotted review time expired.

(7) But what if the play was initially ruled a fumble? If the fumble and the runback were ruled initially, and the Packers challenged, then what? In this hypothetical, Leavy would have likely ruled the same: inconclusive evidence. The Packers would have lost the ball, the Giants would have been entitled to the 12-yard runback, and the Packers would not have had kept their touchdown drive going. It could have been a huge momentum shift in the game.

(8) The league responds. Rather than give a full-throated defense of Leavy, NFL spokeman Greg Aiello e-mailed a tepid response to Pro Football Talk, citing sections of the rulebook.

Referee Bill Leavy conducted the instant replay video review and determined that there was no indisputable visual evidence to warrant reversing the on-field ruling of down by contact.  As a result, the ruling on the field stood.

What was said was true, in a plain, matter-of-fact fashion. What was not said is plainly visible behind the sheer curtain. The league backed up its employee’s judgment call. Nowhere in this response is Carl Johnson, the league’s vice-president of officiating.

Although the league is pretty staunch in its defense of Leavy, they will audit the video from the replay machine. The officiating department has a recording of the 60-second replay session, as well as any communication between the field and the replay booth.

(9) The bottom line. I don’t see any way this can be resolved by changing anything in the replay system. There have been suggestions to move all replay reviews to a central “war room” at the league’s offices in Manhattan, much like the NHL conducts its replay reviews at the home office.

However, it is still up to human judgment which is not without mistake. Who are the supervisors of the officials that make these decisions? They are former referees — referees just like Leavy. So at any given time, the same judgment is rendered.

Also, football is a complex sport. The referee at least has the opportunity to consult with the covering officials prior to viewing a replay. Sometimes there are many aspects of a replay reversal that need to be announced, which could lead to a misleading description if the decision is relayed to the official over the phone. It would be like taking down driving directions without paper – and 70,000 people looking at you.

But, clearly, the wrong call was made, and thankfully it did not result in a change of fortune in a playoff game.

1st Quarter | 13:00 remaining | Lions 7-0 | Lions kickoff | video

Updated below to include similar play from Chargers–Raiders.

Tough break for the Packers, as Patrick Lee muffs the Lions kickoff in the end zone. Lee remained in the end zone, but the ball rolled out to the 1-yard line. Lee pulled the ball back into the end zone for an apparent touchback.

Referee Walt Anderson had a lengthy conference with line judge Mike Spanier and headlinesman Ed Camp. Camp can be seen very clearly articulating the case for a safety, which is how it was ultimately ruled on the field.

On any play involving a touchback or safety, the ruling pivots on how the ball enters the end zone. If the kicking team puts the ball into the end zone, it is a touchback. When the ball is muffed, even though the direction of the ball changed, the force behind the ball still came from the kick. Once Lee pulled the ball backwards, it was Lee that forced the ball into the end zone, regardless of the fact that Lee was standing in the end zone.

Had Lee left the ball on the 1-yard line and kneeled, the ball would have been dead at the 1-yard line. It was close, but the kneel came after the ball returned to the end zone.

Also a consideration on the play (and confirmed by replay) is if the entire ball exited the end zone. If a point of the ball was still touching the goal line, Lee would have had a touchback.

Good, tough call in real time by the three officials on the play.

Week 17: Chargers at Raiders

4th Quarter | 9:32 remaining | Chargers 31-26 | Raiders kickoff @ 50

Chargers kick returner Richard Goodman allowed a kickoff to hit the ground and roll towards the end zone. He needed to get the loose ball, as either team could recover. Goodman scooped up the ball at the 1-yard line, retreated into his end zone, and barely got the entire ball out of the end zone.

Referee Clete Blakeman announced the ball was out of the end zone and down at the ½-yard line.

1st Quarter | 2:12 remaining | Tied 7-7 | Giants ball | 3rd & 6 @ GB 20 | video

Update, 12/6: Video link added.

Giants coach Tom Coughlin, in a game fraught with very tight replay situations, challenged an incomplete pass from quarterback Eli Manning to receiver Jake Ballard in the end zone. (There is no video of the play on NFL.com; we are trying to find another source.)

Coughlin contended that Ballard’s right foot came down, then the right knee in bounds. (Of course, we know that one knee equals two feet.) Ballard secured the ball through to the ground, so in all other respects he completed the process of the catch, and therefore it would be a touchdown.

Jake Ballard was ruled to have his right knee out of bounds on a challenge. Credit: UPI

Referee Jeff Triplette saw otherwise, and confirmed the call on the field, as he judged Ballard’s knee to be out of bounds in the end zone. Giants kicked a field goal on the next play.

As Mike Garafolo of the Newark Star-Ledger reported, Coughlin said, “I just saw a picture that made me sick to my stomach, which Fox produced and showed [Ballard is]  in. Don’t ask me about [why it was not ruled that way] because I really don’t know why, but I did see the picture.”

A UPI photograph, shown here, clearly shows that Ballard, in fact, was entitled to the score. Not only did the Giants lose the challenge, but it cost the team four points.

3rd Quarter | 9:59 remaining | Packers 21-17 | Packers ball | 3rd & 9 @ NYG 20 | video

Packers squeaked out a touchdown to pad their third-quarter lead when receiver Greg Jennings caught an Aaron Rodgers pass and immediately dropped the ball. It was ruled a touchdown on the field (back judge Steve Freeman made the call), but was subject to a replay review.

Referee Jeff Triplette correctly upheld the touchdown. While the grip on the ball by Jennings was tenuous at best, it was enough to establish control of the ball with two feet down in the end zone.  The process-of-the-catch rule does not apply, because Jennings was not falling to the ground.

4th Quarter | 3:40 remaining | Packers 28-27 | Packers ball | 2nd & goal @ 7 | video

Did Donald Driver step out of bounds? This was the only angle for review. Credit: NFL/Fox Sports

Donald Driver caught another Rodgers pass when there was a question as to whether Driver stepped out of bounds prior to the catch. Under the rules, a player who goes out of bounds is not eligible to be the first player to touch a pass. The top Fox Sports crew had only one view of Driver’s potential foot-out-of-bounds, but that was a bad angle from the camera at the 50-yard line. Nonethless, Joe Buck, our highly trained announcer who has shown to be an expert in venue maintenance, also professed to be an expert in angular depth of perception by declaring that Driver had not stepped out.

In any case, it would have been a hairline call, but there was no indisputable evidence to overturn, so Triplette allowed the touchdown to stand.

The Suh ejection was for the kicking Dietrich-Smith. The league will review the entire video which shows Suh slamming Dietrich-Smith’s head to the turf a few times.

The NFL is mulling over a 1- or 2-game suspension for Suh, according to Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer. However, it would be an odd statement of priority if Suh is suspended for two games.

There were two multiple-game suspensions for an on-field incident in NFL history. Both incidents were far more serious than Suh’s conduct, so the precedent would be Suh has a one-game suspension on the way:

• 1986. Packers defensive lineman Charles Martin hit Bears quarterback Jim McMahon well after a pass, separating McMahon’s shoulder. Referee Jerry Markbreit ejected Martin, which was rare at the time for a non-fighting incident. Martin was suspended two games by commissioner Pete Rozelle.
• 2006. Titans defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth stomped on Cowboys offensive lineman Andre Gurode’s face. Referee Jerome Boger assessed a rare double personal foul and ejected Haynesworth. Gurode needed 30 stitches to close the wound caused by Haynesworth’s cleats.

The last suspension for an on-field incident was Dante Wesley’s flagrant hit in 2009 which resulted in a one-game suspension (Zebra Blog coverage).

4th quarter | 1:09 remaining | video.

The Packers and Bears have played each other 183 times, dating back to 1921. Surely this series has seen it all.

No one saw that Bears returner Johnny Knox actually caught the punt rather than Devin Hester, who simulated a catch, faking out the entire Packers coverage team. While everyone was rubbing their eyes at what they couldn’t believe they didn’t see, referee Mike Carey was marching the play back on a holding call that also appeared to be a mystery.

This “phantom” call is not easy to see. In fact, the Fox graphic nearly obscured the hold entirely from the only angle that showed it. Clearly, though, Bears linebacker Corey Graham tangled with the Packers “gunner” Jarrett Bush. In the highlighted area of the picture, you can see Bush’s left shoulder is dipping downward as a result of contact from Graham.

Tough, but correct, call on such an otherwise beautifully executed play — one that we probably won’t see again for several years.

Fair-catch signal. I replayed the video and cannot see if Hester made a fair-catch signal. He apparently did not, because the play would have been dead as soon as Knox caught the ball. From Rule 10, Section 2, Article 3 of the NFL Rulebook:

(a) If a player of the receiving team makes a valid fair-catch signal, and the ball is not touched by a player of the kicking team, [and]…

(3) If the ball is caught or recovered by a teammate who did not make a valid fair-catch signal, the ball is dead immediately, but it is not a fair catch.

Photo credit: NFL/Fox Sports

A previous version of this post had the wrong player identified as the Packers gunner.

Referee assignments are after the jump.

Quick calls

Things at Zebra Blog headquarters didn’t allow us for updates today. I got caught up on some of today’s action with some help by the detailed discussions over at Behind the Football Stripes.

• Jets at Raiders | 2nd quarter | :04 remaining | video. It’s never pretty when an official does something to merit a highlight clip on NFL.com. While attempting to spot the ball in the final seconds of the half, umpire Ruben Fowler lands on all-fours. The ball is spotted in time for the Raiders to stop the clock.
• Jaguars at Panthers | 2nd quarter | 1:28 remaining | video. When the Panthers lead 5-3 (yes!) in an ugly quagmire, Panthers running back Jonathan Stewart had a large gain called back because he was ruled down by contact. You know the conditions are really bad when a network cameraman is unable to see and just maintains a live shot 30 yards wide and pans side to side like it’s The Price Is Right. Somehow, referee Bill Leavy and replay official Charles Stewart were able to see indisputable visual evidence, but surely there was plenty of squinting.
• 49ers at Bengals | 3rd quarter | 6:39 remaining | video. A touchdown catch by 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree was nullified by penalty. Crabtree stepped out of bounds and was then the first to touch the pass, therefore it is an illegal touch penalty. The replay provided did not give a sufficient angle to determine. (It is one of the few penalties that is reviewable, as it is a call related to the sideline/endline.) Field judge Doug Rosenbaum had coverage on the end line; in the video his hat is seen on the endline to mark Crabtree stepping out of bounds.
  6:06 remaining | video. Two plays later, referee Jerome Boger announced a false start penalty on “the entire offensive line.”
• Packers at Bears | 2nd quarter | 2:44 remaining | video. Mike Carey halted the game because of a foreign object (reportedly a sprinkler part) sticking out of the turf, reminiscent of a recent restaurant chain commercial. Although it is hard to hear over Joe Buck’s prattling on like he’s some venue maintenance expert, Carey announced, “There is a dangerous situation down on the field; we will wait until it is repaired by the grounds crew.”

Assignments

(Credit: Football-refs.com)

Sunday, Sept. 25

• Patriots at Bills: Carl Cheffers
• 49ers and Bengals: Jerome Boger
• Dolphins at Browns: Walt Anderson
• Broncos at Titans: John Parry
• Lions at Vikings: Ron Winter
• Texans at Saints: Tony Corrente
• Giants at Eagles: Jeff Triplette
• Jaguars at Panthers: Bill Leavy
• Chiefs at Chargers: Walt Coleman
• Jets at Raiders: Gene Steratore
• Ravens at Rams: Scott Green
• Cardinals at Seahawks: Alberto Riverón
• Falcons at Buccaneers: Clete Blakeman
• Packers at Bears: Mike Carey
• Steelers at Colts: Terry McAuley

Monday, Sept. 26

• Redskins at Cowboys: Ed Hochuli

Since this is essentially news about the officials, we are listing these calls and non-calls from Week 1.

• As noted in this site’s discipline report, Giants safety Kenny Phillips was fined $10,000 for an unspecified play against the Redskins. Ron Winter’s crew missed a blow to the head by Phillips.
• Carl Cheffers’ crew penalized Cardinals cornerback Richard Marshall for unnecessary roughness on a shoulder-to-shoulder hit on Panthers quarterback Cam Newton. Marshall revealed on Twitter (@TheMarshall31) that he would not be fined by the league office. The incorrect penalty, however, was costly, as it nullified the Cardinals interception on the play, and was followed by a Jaguars touchdown two plays later. There is no video of the play, but since the referee has coverage of the quarterback, it is likely that Cheffers, himself, threw the erroneous flag.
• Texans safety Danieal Manning was flagged for his hit on Colts receiver Pierre Garçon. The penalty was for a hit on a defenseless receiver, however an analysis by the Houston Chronicle (with video below) showed the hit was legal as Garçon’s head contacted Manning’s thigh. Manning was not fined. Walt Coleman’s crew officiated the game.

Video credit NFL/CBS Sports with commentary from Houston Chronicle.

• Steelers cornerback Troy Polamalu, fined $15,000, horse-collar tackle
• Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor, $15,000, headbutting an opponent. This lead to the brawl that flattened referee Tony Corrente to the turf.
• Ravens linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo, $15,000, horse-collar tackle
• Packers cornerback Charles Woodson, $10,000, throwing a punch. Obviously, this was not seen by Clete Blakeman’s crew, because Woodson should have been ejected.
• 49ers linebacker Ahmad Brooks, $7,500, roughing the passer
• Giants safety Antrel Rolle, $20,000, spearing
• Giants safety Kenny Phillips, $10,000, striking head or neck area (was not penalized during the game).

Current tally: 7 fines, $92,500.

Mike Carey is the referee.

1st Quarter, 6:26 remaining. The Chiefs challenged the spot of the ball in relation to the first-down marker. Since Ravens running back Ray Rice landed with his hand first, he was not considered down until another part of his body contacted the ground. Ravens got the first down, which was upheld by replay.

3rd Quarter, :21 remaining. A ruling of a sack-fumble by Ravens cornerback Lardarius Webb on Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassel was challenged by the Chiefs. Under the controversial so-called tuck rule, Cassel was found to be still in the act of passing, so Webb knocking the ball out of Cassel’s hand should have resulted in an incomplete pass, rather than a fumble. Carey reversed the on-field ruling to an incomplete pass, marking the first replay reversal of the playoffs an the end of the eleventh quarter of this weekend games.

Packers at Eagles

Pete Morelli is the referee.

4th Quarter, 4:08 remaining. On a two-point conversion attempt, a huge administrative error was averted. A pass to Eagles receiver Brent Celek was completed for two points, however he stepped out of bounds prior to catching the pass (video). A penalty was assessed because a player who steps out of bounds cannot be the first player to touch a pass (illegal-touching-of-a-pass penalty). Celek caught the ball after he returned to (and re-established himself in) the field of play, however Morelli ruled that the conversion try was over. This would be correct if illegal touching is a loss-of-down penalty.

Before the ensuing kickoff, Eagles coach Andy Reid protested that his team should get another chance at the conversion try. One unidentified member of the officiating crew corrected the call, that the five-yard penalty must be assessed and the conversion try attempted from the 7-yard line. The point was moot as the Eagles failed on the second try, but thankfully the error was corrected in a timely fashion, even if slightly delayed.

4th Quarter, 1:06 remaining. Celek was injured on an incomplete pass later in the quarter. When an injury occurs in the final two minutes of the game, a team is charged a timeout. However, since the Eagles had already used all three timeouts, they were granted a fourth, free of penalty. According to Rule 4, Section 5, Article 4:

(d) No yardage penalty will be assessed for the first excess team timeout.

4th Quarter, :33 remaining. Tramon Williams intercepted Eagles quarterback Michael Vick in the end zone to seal the victory, but it could have reversed fortunes back to the Eagles. Williams left the end zone without being ruled down by contact, so the play continued to be live (video). If he had spiked or otherwise let go of the ball, it would have been considered a fumble. Fortunately for Williams, he went to the ground at the 4-yard line to end the play.