Official NFL Thread: 2014-2015 Season

[Toppy Vann]

“We face the Broncos,” Luck said. “I’ve never been into the quarterback vs. quarterback thing. We’re not on the field at the same time.”

If there ever was a senseless storyline in a football game it is the QB vs QB crap. Two players who will never, ever set foot on the field at the same time unlike in the old days of the CFL where they'd play multiple positions.

I thought the Lions got screwed on that call and I didn't expect Joe Buck and Troy Aikman who must bleed for the Cowboys to see it as a brutal call.

Like the author I'm not a conspiracy theorist either and I've seen some of the most biased refereeing in any sport come in football games at the amateur level where a clipping call 40 yards away from the play gets called and brings a 50 yard TD run back or all the marginal stuff called one team's way.

But now that I 've listened to the soccer match fixing guy on CNN International I 'm not always as sure these days in soccer games.

[South Pender]

It gets me to wondering sometimes whether the refs want to be a bigger part of the game--be more important--than they really should be. From any reasonable perspective, it would be best if the referees never really caught our attention, with all the defining actions being those of the players and coaches. I could be dead wrong about this, but it seems to me that sometimes one or more of the officials in a game want to be noticed--to be seen as having an important role in a game--and that's when the debatable calls get made. That doesn't explain the PI screw-up that really hurt the Lions yesterday, though. I'm not much of a conspiracy theorist either; I think it was just a horrible mistake, but you won't be able to convince the Lions fans that it was anything other than the NFL wanting to see Dallas--with its bigger market and greater cachet--continue on in the playoffs!
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Well, now it's official. The NFL head of officiating admits that the Lions got screwed.

Dean Blandino acknowledges Cowboys got away with one
Posted by Michael David Smith on January 5, 2015, 2:59 PM EST

NFL head of officiating Dean Blandino isn’t trying to sugarcoat the key call that went against the Lions in Sunday’s loss to the Cowboys.

Blandino, appearing on PFT Live, told Mike Florio that Cowboys linebacker Anthony Hitchens did get away with a penalty on the Lions’ fourth-quarter pass to Brandon Pettigrew. But Blandino said the missed call that troubled him most was not the pass interference flag that was originally thrown but later picked up.

According to Blandino, the clear penalty Hitchens got away with was defensive holding: Hitchens grabbed Pettigrew’s jersey while Pettigrew was running his route, and Blandino said that should have been called. If it had been, it would have given the Lions an automatic first down.

Blandino said the pass interference penalty that one official flagged, only to get overruled by another official, was a “close call that could have went either way.” Blandino acknowledged that the officials should have done a better job of communicating, first among themselves so that they could get the call right, and then after referee Pete Morelli turned on his microphone to announce the penalty. Morelli first announced pass interference, then later announced that the pass interference penalty would not be enforced — but that second announcement was so hasty that the FOX broadcast missed it.

Although some observers have suggested that Pettigrew also should have been flagged for facemasking Hitchens, Blandino says that’s not the case.

“I felt that was minimal contact,” Blandino said of Pettigrew’s contact with Hitchens’s facemask.

Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant ran onto the field to argue the pass interference call, and Blandino said Bryant could have been flagged for that. Blandino said running on the field to argue with an official is “not an automatic penalty,” but he added that “I certainly would have supported a call for unsportsmanlike conduct.”

Ultimately, Blandino admits, if all of the elements of that play had been called correctly, the Lions would have had a first down. Instead the Lions had a fourth down, shanked a punt, and gave up the game-winning touchdown on the subsequent drive. The Lions will be left to wonder what might have happened if that penalty on Hitchens had been called.

[WestCoastJoe]

It gets me to wondering sometimes whether the refs want to be a bigger part of the game--be more important--than they really should be. From any reasonable perspective, it would be best if the referees never really caught our attention, with all the defining actions being those of the players and coaches. I could be dead wrong about this, but it seems to me that sometimes one or more of the officials in a game want to be noticed--to be seen as having an important role in a game--and that's when the debatable calls get made. That doesn't explain the PI screw-up that really hurt the Lions yesterday, though. I'm not much of a conspiracy theorist either; I think it was just a horrible mistake, but you won't be able to convince the Lions fans that it was anything other than the NFL wanting to see Dallas--with its bigger market and greater cachet--continue on in the playoffs!
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Well, now it's official. The NFL head of officiating admits that the Lions got screwed.

Dean Blandino acknowledges Cowboys got away with one
Posted by Michael David Smith on January 5, 2015, 2:59 PM EST

NFL head of officiating Dean Blandino isn’t trying to sugarcoat the key call that went against the Lions in Sunday’s loss to the Cowboys.

Blandino, appearing on PFT Live, told Mike Florio that Cowboys linebacker Anthony Hitchens did get away with a penalty on the Lions’ fourth-quarter pass to Brandon Pettigrew. But Blandino said the missed call that troubled him most was not the pass interference flag that was originally thrown but later picked up.

According to Blandino, the clear penalty Hitchens got away with was defensive holding: Hitchens grabbed Pettigrew’s jersey while Pettigrew was running his route, and Blandino said that should have been called. If it had been, it would have given the Lions an automatic first down.

Blandino said the pass interference penalty that one official flagged, only to get overruled by another official, was a “close call that could have went either way.” Blandino acknowledged that the officials should have done a better job of communicating, first among themselves so that they could get the call right, and then after referee Pete Morelli turned on his microphone to announce the penalty. Morelli first announced pass interference, then later announced that the pass interference penalty would not be enforced — but that second announcement was so hasty that the FOX broadcast missed it.

Although some observers have suggested that Pettigrew also should have been flagged for facemasking Hitchens, Blandino says that’s not the case.

“I felt that was minimal contact,” Blandino said of Pettigrew’s contact with Hitchens’s facemask.

Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant ran onto the field to argue the pass interference call, and Blandino said Bryant could have been flagged for that. Blandino said running on the field to argue with an official is “not an automatic penalty,” but he added that “I certainly would have supported a call for unsportsmanlike conduct.”

Ultimately, Blandino admits, if all of the elements of that play had been called correctly, the Lions would have had a first down. Instead the Lions had a fourth down, shanked a punt, and gave up the game-winning touchdown on the subsequent drive. The Lions will be left to wonder what might have happened if that penalty on Hitchens had been called.

Wow. As has been stated numerous times on here, this blogger is not a fan of Jerry Jones. So it is not a happy occasion to see his team benefit from so many unlikely circumstances. A penalty call on Dez Bryant would have been rough justice for Jones, who gambled in the draft on a talented, selfish player. Whatever, Jones has always been willing to spend the money. As GM, he must have acquired a lot of talent to be where they are this season.

Happier times ... 1989. Jimmy was with Miami U, and Jerry had not yet bought the Cowboys. Apparently Jones played O Line very effectively for Arkansas at less than 200 pounds. He has guts and nerve, as seen in his business dealings.

[Toppy Vann]

They admit their should been a flag on the non PI call that favoured Dallas and helped them win. A bit late to change that. Some spec that they might in future want to challenge PI situations but that is very unlikely.

[South Pender]

Definitely not a Jerry Jones fan here either. I rank him 2nd to only Dan Snyder as the worst owner in football, and he's thoroughly turned me off the 'Boys, a team I really liked in the Tex Schramm/Tom Landry days. I was really hoping for a Lions win in Big D, and it might have happened (but who knows?) if the PI call had stood. From a purely strategic perspective, it might be better for the Seahawks to be playing the Panthers, as they will on Saturday, than the Lions, whom they would have been playing had the Lions prevailed.

[South Pender]

NFL Divisional Playoffs - Previews and odds.

1. Saturday, Jan. 10

AFC: 1:35 p.m. PST: Ravens at Patriots: http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/201501100 ... ab=preview; Odds: Patriots by 7

NFC: 5:15 p.m. PST: Panthers at Seahawks: http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/201501100 ... ab=preview; Seahawks by 12

2. Sunday, Jan. 11

NFC: 10:05 a.m. PST: Cowboys at Packers: http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/201501110 ... ab=preview; Packers by 5.5

AFC: 1:40 p.m. PST: Colts at Broncos: http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/201501110 ... ab=preview; Broncos by 7

Game Notes

Should be four good games. The Ravens have been coming on in recent games and could give the Patriots as much as they can handle. The Ravens do have some injuries, however, and the Patriots are pretty healthy for this game. The Panthers, too, have really been looking good in the last five games, and Cam Newton seems to be past his injuries and playing well.

Both the Panthers and Seahawks are relatively healthy (ignoring the earlier season injuries that have seen players lost for the season, like Seahawks Brandon Mebane and Zach Miller). The only guy the Seahawks will miss is Jordan Hill, who is now on IR and who came on big in the interior of the D-line in the last quarter of the season. WR Jermaine Kearse, C Max Unger, and TE Cooper Helfet will be back on offense, and CB Tharold Simon on defense.

Cowboys at Packers should be a great game. The Boys have had a couple of injuries to their defensive starters, and this will make it even harder to stop Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense. On the other hand, the Packers' defense hasn't been all that great, and Tony Romo, Dez Bryant, and DeMarco Murray may put up some points. Just hope the TV crew doesn't pan away to Jerry Jones's box too often....

Colts at Broncos. I'd be very surprised to see the Colts win this one. The Broncos have found a ground game with C. J. Anderson, and Peyton Manning is seldom much less than great. On the other hand, Andrew Luck has developed into the big-game quarterback that was expected; so this could be a decent game.
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Just ran across this story about how the Seahawks are set to make Russell Wilson the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap300000 ... estpaid-qb

Here's the text:

One of the Seattle Seahawks' major competitive advantages is set to vanish prior to the start of next season.

NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reports, via sources involved in the situation, Russell Wilson is expected to become the NFL's highest-paid quarterback when the Seahawks sign him to a long-term extension in the coming offseason.

Seattle has built the NFL's deepest and most talented roster while devoting less than $1 million per year to the starting quarterback since Wilson was drafted in 2012.

Aaron Rodgers is currently atop the NFL's salary structure, with a five-year, $110 million contract averaging $22 million annually.

Wilson's rookie contract runs through the 2015 season, but the organization intends to take care of him this year rather than next.

As a means to that end, they jettisoned Percy Harvin's inflated salary and extended the contracts of nucleus defensive starters Cliff Avril and K.J. Wright.

Wilson isn't deserving of a richer contract than Rodgers, but this is how salaries escalate in professional sports.

Just as Ndamukong Suh has the leverage to overtake J.J. Watt as the highest-paid defensive player, the Seahawks have no choice but to set a new contract bar for the steadily improving 26-year-old quarterback of the reigning Super Bowl champions and current Super Bowl favorites.

After toiling three years as the NFL's most underpaid star, Wilson is about to be rewarded as the highest-paid.
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I hope this isn't true. Wilson is a very good quarterback, but not yet in the class of Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, and this kind of huge salary will strain the cap to the limit and rule out much help in free agency.

[South Pender]

Interesting weekend of football. Three of the games went as predicted by the oddsmakers, but the Colts-Broncos was a complete surprise (to me at least).

Ravens at Patriots: a close and exciting game--could have gone either way. Both quarterbacks were on their games. Recap:

http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/201501100 ... e=boxscore

Panthers at Seahawks: typical Seahawks game--let the other guys hang around in the first half, and then explode in the second. I thought Russell Wilson was just sensational, racking up a 149.2 passer rating and running for 22. Kam Chancellor was just Superman on defense--what an athlete. A couple of Seahawks injuries: Paul Richardson with a knee injury (a tear according to the latest news today), so he's done for the year. Max Unger got his ankle rolled up on and hobbled off. That one might not be serious, but we'll await news. Unger's presence was big in this game, and they will need him next week against the Packers. Recap:

http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/201501100 ... &tab=recap

Cowboys at Packers. I really enjoyed this one, seeing the Boys go down. I thought both quarterbacks played well--particularly Aaron Rodgers who was obviously hobbled by the calf injury, but gutted it out and went 24/35 (69%) for 316 yards and 3 TDs. DeMarco Murray was tremendous for the Cowboys. I thought the incomplete-pass call near the end of the game with Dez Bryant was very close, but going against the Cowboys as it did constituted karma of sorts--righting the wrong of last week's bad non PI-call in their favour against the Lions. Recap:

http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/201501110 ... &tab=recap

Colts at Broncos. A shocker at Mile High. I haven't seen much of the Colts this year, but they definitely had the better of the play in this one and deserved the win. Peyton Manning was clearly not the same guy we've seen in recent years, going only 26/46 (57%) for 211 yards and 1 TD. I'm wondering whether maybe Manning has been playing hurt without this being put out by the team. He has seemed very un-Peyton Manning-like in the last several games. Maybe age is catching up with him. Wonder whether we'll see him back next season. Recap:

http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/201501110 ... &tab=recap

So, the conference championship games are set for next Sunday. Colts (seed 4) at Patriots (1) and Packers (2) at Seahawks (1). These could be great games, particularly the NFC one. For me personally, the Seahawks and Packers are my two favorite NFL teams, so I'll be happy with either outcome--although I have to say I hope the 'Hawks win. For the AFC final, frankly it's hard to see the Colts going into Foxborough and beating the Patriots. But, hey, you never know; look at today's improbable outcome!

Early odds: Seahawks by 7.5; Patriots by 7.

[KnowItAll]

I knew there would be one upset. I was hoping it would be the ravens winning. Would have been nice to see a back to back SB rematch for what I think would have been only the second time in SB history

[TheLionKing]

Delighted that "America's team" is out.

[KnowItAll]

Delighted that "America's team" is out.

hey, what do you have against Houston???

[TheLionKing]

Delighted that "America's team" is out.

hey, what do you have against Houston???

Nothing against Houston, it's the other Texas team.

[aklawitter]

Manning was supposedly playing with a torn quad


Pretty amazing career though, a fun trivia fact will be that Jim Harbaugh (that one) was the Colts' starter before Manning

[South Pender]

Manning was supposedly playing with a torn quad

That's interesting about Manning, aklawitter. I hadn't known that. Anyway, I dug a little into this and came up with this report from Pro Football Talk:

Severity of Peyton’s injury called into question
Posted by Michael David Smith on January 12, 2015, 12:11 PM EST

As the NFL world wonders what went wrong with Peyton Manning in Sunday’s loss to the Colts, anonymous sources are engaged in a back-and-forth about the severity of his leg injury.

What we know is this: Manning took a hard hit in Week 15 against the Chargers, briefly left the game, and has been listed on the team’s injury report as having a thigh injury since then.

What we don’t know is the severity of that injury. Adam Schefter of ESPN reported today that Manning has been playing through a torn quadriceps. But shortly after Schefter’s report, Troy Renck of the Denver Post reported that Manning simply had a strain, not a full tear.

Schefter attributed his report to “two sources,” while Renck attributed his report to “a team source.” So we have no idea who’s talking and why. But it’s fair to think that Schefter’s two sources are motivated by putting Manning in a positive light, suggesting that Manning didn’t struggle because he’s getting old but because he was playing through an injury. Conversely, Renck’s team source may be motivated by not wanting the Broncos to appear to have been playing fast and loose with the NFL’s injury reporting rules.

Meanwhile, Jay Glazer of FOX reports that Manning actually has injuries to both quads, with a strain or partial tear in one and a deep bruise in the other.

If you believe Manning was struggling late in the season because he’s hurt, you probably believe that with a full offseason to rest, he can be a great quarterback again next season. If you believe that Manning only suffered the kind of minor injury that all NFL players suffer at some point in a season, you probably believe that Manning is showing signs of age, and that he’ll never be the kind of player he once was.

Whether Manning has a future in Denver — or anywhere else — remains to be seen. He turns 39 in March.
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Whatever it is, Manning sure didn't look Manning-like in yesterday's game. A lot of his passes were badly off-target, and a serious quad injury would affect his ability to plant and put pressure on his leg. Aaron Rodgers too, of course, played through a calf injury, but seemed able to plant and throw, even though his scrambling ability was obviously affected. I think we'll see changes in Denver (Wes Welker's return is questionable, evidently), and Manning might not want to play another season there. Time will tell.

[TheLionKing]

Rex Ryan new head coach for the Buffalo Bills. Is Marc Trestman going to be the new OC ?

[Sir Purrcival]

That call against the Cowboys was bunk. I don't like the Cowboys but I have to question how many steps does one have to take with the ball before it ceases to be an incomplete rather than a fumble?

He took 3 steps, had the ball under control during those three steps and then reaches for the goal line. If he had been one inch farther and had broke the plane, would the play then have been a touchdown rather than an incomplete? Also, at what point is a player considered down. If you look at the replay, you can clearly see that the players elbow (the one not holding the ball) was in contact with the ground prior to the ball making contact with the turf. Is that not down by contact? As I said, I don't like the Cowboys so I don't have any bitterness about them losing but even I have to think that was a botched call. The rule as it is written could be interpreted in the same way if the receiver had taken 20 steps. It is still part of the continuity of the play if he takes 3, 4, 5 or 30 steps and then loses the ball. Is that then incomplete? I guess it just shows that the rule is way too open to interpretation and that the CFL is not the only league that gets plagued with bad calls from time to time. Isn't the NFL the league that always gets referenced as to how superior the officiating is when there is some controversy in the CFL? Well for 2 weeks in a row, we have seen some bad, bad calls against teams at critical times in games; possible game changing calls so I think that the myth of the NFL being the best officiated league has taken a beating lately.