Green crew should’ve shut down ugly play

Saints at Falcons (video) This was a downright sloppy play by Scott Green's crew on Thursday night no matter how you look at it, even though the final ruling on the play was correct. Falcons running back Michael Turner seemed to be stopped and then lost the ball. (This part is correct,

Can the NFL players union help the NFL referees union?

This has been a week of point-counterpoint news stories and rebuttals, as summarized by Barry Wilner of the Associated Press, about the labor dispute between the NFL and its referees.  The NFL has locked out the members of the NFL Referees Association since June 3, due to an impasse in

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

Quick calls: Week 5

Saints at Panthers | 1st quarter | 3:05 remaining | video. Panthers receiver Steve Smith scored a touchdown and was immediately plowed over by Saints safety Roman Harper. You don't need to drag out the Pythagorean theorem to see that Harper's angle on the play only has him meeting Smith

Quick calls: Week 4

Look for updates later in the day. If you see something, you can add a comment to this post or reduce it to 140 characters or less (@footballzebras). Giants at Cardinals Victor Cruz's catch has become its own post. Jerome Boger's crew had a simultaneous timeout call from the Giants' sideline and a

Week 2 open forum, assignments

Entering Week 2, let us know in the comments or @footballzebras if you see anything in this week's games that seems to be the wrong call. Referee assignments after the jump. Quick calls Browns at Colts | 2nd quarter | :38 remaining. A touchdown run by Peyton Hillis was reviewed and reversed.

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

Saturday’s Wild Card officiating

Saints at Seahawks Walt Coleman is the referee, heading up Terry McAulay's crew. First half. No replay reviews. Saints have 4 penalties for 18 yards, Seahawks 3/14, no penalties declined. 4th Quarter, 3:38 remaining. On the amazing touchdown run by Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch, did quarterback Matt Hasselbeck throw an illegal block