Kickoff 2013: The officials by the numbers

Click the image to enlarge. It is time to kick off the new football season! Here are some numbers for all of the zebra watchers out there. Enjoy! Designed and researched by Ben Austro. Sources: NFL Record and Fact Book (2013, 2008, 2000); Pro-Football-Reference.com (Coleman, Freeman, McKinnely); Football Zebras, "Officiating crews for the

NFL ref experts break down divisional playoffs

Pereira and Daopoulos disagree on the Peyton Manning fumble/tuck rule As has been the case all season, former NFL vice president for officiating Mike Pereira and former NFL official and officiating supervisor Jim Daopoulos talked about the correct, incorrect, and strange calls in last weekend's divisional playoffs. Pereira, who is an officiating

Microphone is ref’s friend for no-sense rules

It elicits snickers from football fans when it happens, and it sometimes trends on Twitter. Referee Ed Hochuli turns on his microphone to explain a ruling, and some fans joke that it is NFL open mic night. An example from 2009: We reviewed whether the ball was fumbled down near the

Leavy hits Steelers with 3 questionable calls

A series of calls in the second quarter by Bill Leavy's crew were questionable at best. Non-restrictive pass interference. A deep incomplete pass was flagged for defensive pass interference, despite a lack of contact that restricted the wide receiver. The penalty gave the Giants 41 extra yards on their touchdown drive.

VP of officiating likes the Tuck Rule

Contrasting to his predecessor's opinion, vice-president of officiating Carl Johnson has defended the rule that, until the recent arrival of "the process of the catch," was considered one of the sport's worst. It is the dreaded Tuck Rule, added to the rulebook in 1999, and most notably implemented in a 2002

Pereira: Time to retire infamous tuck rule

It is a rule that rarely comes into play. In fact it is discussed far more often than it actually happens in the game. But the time the so-called Tuck Rule was applied in a snowy Raiders–Patriots game was enough to get fans of all stripes to unite in cause

Sunday’s Wild Card officiating

Ravens at Chiefs 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