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Week 14: Vikings at Lions

4th quarter | :09 remaining | Lions 34-28 | Vikings ball | 1st & goal @ 1 | video

The Vikings were on the comeback express, having trailed by 21, and were one yard from overcoming the deficit against the Lions with seconds remaining.

Vikings quarterback Joe Webb fumbled the ball on the final play, and after a mad scramble, the ball was recovered by the Lions with the time expired. Game over.

However, the officials missed two fouls committed by the Lions on the play.

Facemask penalty. Coinciding with the fumbled ball was a grasp and twist of Webb’s facemask by Lions DeAndre Levy. While this should have been caught, referee John Parry, who has coverage on the quarterback, obviously was not in position to see it. (Webb’s back was to him.) However, this is a huge missed call given to the entire crew.

Illegally batting the ball. In the scramble to pick up the loose ball, Steven Tulloch swatted the ball downfield. That is an illegal bat, and should have also been penalized. Because the game was under two minutes remaining, the rule for fumbles is that the fumbler is now the only offensive player who can pick up the loose ball and run. In this case, Webb was close to potentially recovering the ball, until Tulloch deliberately pushed the ball downfield. In my opinion, there was no intent to recover the fumble, as Tulloch hit the ball with his left hand, while his right hand remained at his side. In real time (without the benefit of replay) this is a hard judgement to make; therefore, it is rarely called.

The week prior to a calendar changes prompts a look back at the biggest and best of the year in every imaginable category. There are no trophies, but in this case there ought to be. In the year-end Sports Illustrated, Richard Deitsch named NFL on Fox officiating analyst Mike Pereira as the best sports media person of the year.

Periera retired last year as the vice-president of officiating, in which his weekly chores included an “Official Review” segment on the NFL Network. It was the first time someone from the league office made himself available on a weekly basis to discuss the calls on the field. Even though it was filtered through the league-owned cable network, he still used the platform to engage in controversial calls and critiques of the officials.

Pereira’s retirement was partially motivated by his desire to live near his elderly parents in California, and the league office is in New York. Fox Sports seized the opportunity to hire Pereira, as they are, unlike their competition, located in Los Angeles.

The incorporation of Pereira into the broadcast is nothing short of genius. Serving as a rules-interpretation jukebox, he will pop in to a broadcast to relieve the game commentators from embarrassingly wrong analysis of the NFL rulebook. So far, he was correct on 49 of 50 replay challenges this season, or right on the league average of 98 percent. (In this case, “correct” means matching the call made on the field.)

Pereira has even made himself available during the Thanksgiving Day game and the regionally telecast Giants–Vikings game that was moved to Monday due to stadium damage.

The part that we miss, however, is the non-Fox games, obviously. It becomes painfully obvious when a former jock shows his complete lack of knowledge of the sport he once played. (Isolated example, video of Matt Millen’s complete lack of understanding of how the end-zone pylon indicates in-bounds and out-of-bounds.)

We appreciate Pereira’s analysis, but he is now hamstrung by league rules from showing game footage outside of the “broadcast window” to explain the calls beyond Fox game broadcasts or on the Internet. Even with that limitation, his analysis has been the obvious, slap-to-the-forehead answer to decades worth of bad rules interpretation from the booth.

We haven’t been reviewing the “Official Review” segments on the NFL Network this season since its debut under Carl Johnson. Johnson, the new vice-president of officiating, has not appeared on the network’s signature program NFL Total Access on a weekly basis, like his predecessor, Mike Pereira. In addition, the segment has less plays and less-controversial plays under review than last year.

We happened to catch this week’s “Official Review,” so here’s the recap:

• From the Tuesday night game against the Eagles, Vikings receiver Sidney Rice scored a touchdown that was overturned on replay. Rice did not secure the ball through the process of the catch, and the ball touched the ground, rendering it incomplete (video).
• From the Giants–Packers game, there is more of a process review, rather than analysis of a call. On the fumble by Giants running back Brandon Jacobs, it was apparent from the replay that all players who touched the ball were in bounds (video). Johnson briefly notes the need for a player to re-establish himself in the field of play, which could have been explained at greater length for an audience, rather than repeating the same points.

Johnson is improving his presentation skills slightly since his first appearance, but he appears to have enough material to cover one-third of the segment, requiring him to repeat some of the more basic points in his presentation. Hopefully by next year, the network can coach Johnson to not divulge everything up front, allowing the host to ask follow-up questions to pad out the segment.

Dec. 28, 1975
NFC Divisional Playoff: Cowboys at Vikings

Thirty-five years ago, “Hail Mary” became a football term after Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach so described the desperation pass that connected with Drew Pearson in a playoff game with the Vikings.

In the final drive, the Vikings were convinced that the touchdown should never have counted by crucial calls on two plays in the drive. In protest, a hailstorm of debris was thrown from the Metropolitan Stadium crowd, with a half-full bottle of Corby’s whiskey striking an official in the head.

A video of the original CBS television broadcast called by Gary Bender and Johnny Unitas is below.

Fourth and 16. Staubach connected with Pearson near the sideline, but landed out of bounds at the 50-yard line. Head linesman Jerry Bergman ruled that it was a completion, and that he would have landed in bounds if Vikings cornerback Nate Wright had not pushed Pearson out. The rule, which was changed in 2008, allowed the official to rule a completion in case of a “force out” prior to being able to get two feet down in bounds. Vikings coach Bud Grant disagreed with the call, but said that when Wright contacted Pearson, “the official gave Pearson the benefit of the doubt.”

The Hail Mary. After an incomplete pass, Staubach heaved the ball to Pearson who was at the 4-yard line and tangling with Wright. Pearson caught the pass and walked in for the go-ahead touchdown. Wright immediately protested the call with field judge Armen Terzian, claiming offensive pass interference should have been called, and would have had the interception if he wasn’t interfered with. Coach Grant thought it was clearly a penalty:

From our side of the field, there is now question that Nate was pushed. No question. [Pearson] had nothing to lose. If they called a penalty on him, what had he lost? They would just line up and try another long pass. It was one chance in a hundred that he would get away with it, but it was the only chance he had.

Pearson claimed he was playing the ball, but admitted that he might have gotten called for a push:

It was a little bit short so I had come back a little and that gave me a chance to get away from Nate. The ball juggled around a little and I finally caught it between my elbow and my ribs. … I thought I might have gotten pass interference. It could have gone either way.

No penalty was called, and the touchdown stood.

Terzian gets pelted. The irate crowd was already throwing things onto the field, as an NFL Films slow-motion video shows an orange hitting the field during the touchdown reception. With the Vikings in possession for the final seconds of the game, Terzian, the field judge, was struck in the head by a bottle, rendering him unconscious. Bergman, the head linesman, immediately came to his aid and was holding Terzian’s head until the Vikings medical staff arrived. Terzian had to leave the game and backup official Charley Musser officiated his position for the final two plays. Terzian required 11 stitches to close the gash in his forehead.

There are two postscripts to Terzian’s career. First, he is immortalized in a 1978 NFL Films clip which Chiefs head coach Marv Levy was wearing a microphone on the sideline. After admitting in pregame that he went to the college with Terzian, he is later seen screaming one of the most memorable quotes captured by the NFL Films microphones (which I cannot find online without being doctored up by the uploader):

Hey, Armen. Hey, you over-officious jerk.

Second, Terzian moved to a replay judge in the first generation system in the mid-1980s. During a 1988 Giants–Cowboys game, the opening kickoff was muffed by the Cowboys receiver and was ruled a safety. Terzian should have overruled the call (as was the procedure in the earlier version of replay review), but he never called for a review. The points were decisive, as the Giants won 12-10. For his error, Terzian was suspended by commissioner Pete Rozelle, but Terzian opted to retire.

Terzian died in 1989 at the age of 74.

Video credit: NFL/CBS Sports. Photo  credit: Charles Curtis/Duluth News Tribune

Week 16: Vikings at Eagles

Tonight’s game in Philadelphia had to be postponed due to a coastal winter storm that is forecasted to bring blizzard conditions to the area. It is the first Tuesday game since Oct. 1, 1946, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, when the Giants played the now-defunct Boston Yanks.

Oddly, this game was originally scheduled to kick off at 1 p.m., when conditions were not bad for Philadelphia, but the game had already been moved to primetime under the flexible scheduling provision for Sunday Night Football. By 8:00, the conditions are expected to be far too dangerous for the public.

Philadelphia hosted the 1948 NFL Championship game at Shibe Park between the Eagles and the Chicago Cardinals in a heavy snowstorm. Despite the league office considering a postponement, commissioner Bert Bell allowed the game to be played (video from E-footage.com).

The decision to postpone the 2010 game is the right one from a public-safety standpoint. As incredibly awesome as the sight might have been of a heavy snowstorm, it is not worth jeopardizing the safety of the fans, game personnel and emergency services. In the end, it is just a football game.

Rule 17 of the NFL rulebook outlines the procedures that the NFL took in making a decision today:

Article 4. The NFL affirms the position that in most circumstances all regular-season and postseason games should be played to their conclusion. If, in the opinion of appropriate League authorities, it is impossible to begin or continue a game due to an emergency, or a game is deemed to be imminently threatened by any such emergency (e.g., severely inclement weather, lightning, flooding, power failure), the following procedures (Articles 5 through 11) will serve as guidelines for the Commissioner and/or his duly appointed representatives. The Commissioner has the authority to review the circumstances of each emergency and to adjust the following procedures in whatever manner he deems appropriate. If, in the Commissioner’s opinion, it is reasonable to project that the resumption of an interrupted game would not change its ultimate result or adversely affect any other inter-team competitive issue, he is empowered to terminate the game.

Article 5. The League employees vested with the authority to define emergencies under these procedures are the Commissioner, designated representatives from his League office staff, and the game Referee. In those instances where neither the Commissioner nor his designated representative is in attendance at a game, the Referee will have sole authority; provided, however, that if a Referee delays the beginning of or interrupts a game for a significant period of time due to an emergency, he must make every effort to contact the Commissioner or the Commissioner’s designated representative for consultation. In all cases of significant delay, the League authorities will consult with the management of the participating clubs and will attempt to obtain appropriate information from outside sources, if applicable (e.g., weather bureau, police).

Article 6. If, because of an emergency, a regular-season or postseason game is not started at its scheduled time and cannot be played at any later time that same day, the game nevertheless must be played on a subsequent date to be determined by the Commissioner.

By now you are well aware of the blizzard in Minnesota that caused the roof to collapse on the Metrodome. Other than the fact that Fox Sports cameras caught some incredible footage of the collapse that we can gratuitously embed here, we have nothing more to report on with regards to the officiating.

The Giants–Vikings game has been rescheduled to Monday at 7:20 p.m. (EST) and will now be played at Ford Field in Detroit. Jeff Triplette’s crew will be officiating.

Week 12: Colts at Chargers

An item that flew by our desk late last week that we are getting to now: Colts head coach Jim Caldwell, quoted in Friday morning’s Indianapolis Star, said that the league admitted to a blown call in the game the previous Sunday.

An Eric Weddle interception of Colts’ quarterback Peyton Manning should not have counted according to the NFL, said Caldwell. Weddle was guilty of pass interference on Reggie Wayne, however none of the officials called it (video). Weddle returned the interception for a touchdown in a game where one score was not decisive. While pointing out the mea culpa, the league never apologized for the error, Coach Caldwell said:

Sorry is not part of their response. It’s just a declaration that, “We did indeed miss that one; it should have been called.”

Alberto Riverón’s crew was officiating.

Recently fired Vikings head coach Brad Childress revealed NFL confidential discussions of this nature in Week 7 and was fined $35,000 for the infraction. The Steelers also had a Week 9 discussion leak from an unidentified source.

WEEK 9: STEELERS AT BENGALS

The NFL does not generally make public announcements regarding mistaken calls by the referees. Occasionally, they will contact the team with such an admission, and these conversations are generally confidential. Generally, these conversations are only leaked out, and Vikings coach Brad Childress found out two weeks ago that the league doesn’t appreciate these admissions making the public wire. He was fined for disclosing this confidential information.

It’s unknown whether a league or team source was the tip-off, but Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reporter Gerry Dulac  reported on Friday that the NFL had agreed with Steelers coach Mike Tomlin on two contested calls from the Monday night game. The two calls on consecutive plays helped set up the Bengals on the 1-yard line for a fourth-quarter touchdown:

• A low-hit call on Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer was penalized 15 yards on nose tackle Casey Hampton.
• Cornerback Ike Taylor was penalized for pass interference on Bengals receiver Terrell Owens.

The first call is in an odd category of an acceptable call. The league has long told the officials that if they are unsure of head and knee contact being illegal, they should err on the side of safety and call the penalty. So even though the league may agree that there was no penalty because Palmer’s thigh was contacted, and not his knee, the official was following the safety-first provision.

The crew was headed by Ron Winter.

NFL OWNERS APPROVE ‘MODIFIED SUDDEN DEATH’

The Competition Committee moved on changing the dynamic of postseason overtime on a nonexistent platform: field position after a kickoff gives a short field for an easy put-the-game-away field goal.

In postseason play, this situation has happened only three times. Yes, only three times has a team advanced the ball in overtime from kickoff to field goal in a playoff game, most recently in the 2009 NFC Championship game where the Saints advanced over the Vikings.

The Vikings, not one to sour on their lost destiny, voted against the modified sudden-death proposal. The Bills, Bengals and Ravens were the only others to reject the proposal

Only two items on this week’s “Official Review” with the league’s vice-president of officiating, Mike Pereira. Usually, we have a web-only video to go along with the NFL Network segment, but we only have one segment this week (video). We will take these out of order.

First: the injury to back judge Rich Reels. We asked the league for an update on his status, and they simply responded, “Reels returned to the game.” Pereira said that Reels suffered chest contusions, and that he was going to be out for a week. We also asked about the report of equiping officials with protective gear, but received a generic answer. Pereira did not indicate what may be under consideration, but he acknowledged that this is becoming an increased risk:

I think it’s time that we do take a look at getting them set up with some more protection, especially the umpires. The game has gotten faster, the players have gotten bigger. And whether it’s helmets, whether it’s shoulder pads, whether it’s moving him to an alternate position to get him out of the way, I think we’re going to have to look at it, because we are getting too many people hurt

Before we move on, we did not address the penalty that happened four plays earlier in the Vikings–Steelers game. A Vikings touchdown was taken off the board because of a trip call against the tight end, Jeff Dugan. Dugan blocked his defender low, but legally, and knocked the defender off his feet. This was obviously penalized incorrectly as tripping, which not only took the six points away, but also lead to a fumble return three plays later put six points on the other side of the scoreboard. The kickoff following the touchdown was the one which Reels was injured. Coincidentally, Dugan was the one that ran the official over. And to be clear, it was certainly an accident, we are not implying anything nefarious.

Pereira also addressed a clear incomplete pass in the Saints–Dolphins game that could not be reviewed because of a malfunction in the replay equipment. Periera explained the procedure that, in case of buggy equipment, the referee can wait no longer than two minutes, at which point the replay is abandoned for that play and the challenge is not docked from the coach. In this case, there was a malfunctioning switch froze the system which required the replay technician to reboot the system.

And, oddly, we think that the NFL Network’s Rich Eisen might be aspiring to replace Drew Carey with a couple of references to The Price Is Right. We’ll know for sure if he mentions Plinko in next week’s segment.