Blakeman crew cool under chaos

Week 13: Lions at Saints Clete Blakeman's crew officiated a game that could have easily become uncontrollable at any moment. It didn't help that they were shorthanded. Umpire Garth DeFelice left the game midway through the first quarter with a foot injury. That required the crew to readjust their mechanics to officiate

U DeFelice out with foot injury

Umpire Garth DeFelice departed the Lions-Saints game early with a foot injury at 5:45 of the first quarter. (Apparently it was on the kickoff, because all seven officials were on the field for the preceding field goal.) Sunday Night Football sideline reporter Michelle Tafoya said that it appears to be

NFL fines, non-fines reveal official evals

We noted the players who were fined for on-field conduct in Week 1. Hidden in this list are some of the league's evaluations of its officials. If a fine is issued for a play where no flag was thrown, this is graded as a missed call. Also, in the case

Niners Smith pushes U DeFelice, ejected

Week 15: 49ers at Chargers Niners defensive tackle Justin Smith was ejected from the Thursday night 49ers-Chargers game for impermissible contact with an official (video). Umpire Garth DeFelice was attempting to break up some post-play shoving when Smith pushed DeFelice's arm off of him. Whether or not Smith knew it was an