January 17, 200620 yr League's Review: Call Reversal Wrong By JUDY BATTISTA Published: January 17, 2006 The National Football League admitted yesterday that officials erred Sunday when they overturned an interception by Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu in the fourth quarter of the Steelers' 21-18 divisional playoff victory at Indianapolis. In perhaps the most glaring example in a weekend of controversial calls, the ruling let the Colts keep the ball. They scored a touchdown four plays later, then a 2-point conversion, to cut their deficit to 3 points with 4 minutes 24 seconds remaining. Had the correct call been made, the Steelers would have had the ball at their 48-yard line with an 11-point lead and with 5:26 left. Officials on the field had the call correct when they originally ruled that Polamalu intercepted Peyton Manning's pass at midfield, then tumbled to the ground and fumbled the ball as he got up to run. Polamalu then recovered his own fumble. But Colts Coach Tony Dungy challenged the call. The referee Pete Morelli reviewed the play on videotape and determined that Polamalu did not complete the catch. Morelli explained later that as Polamalu got up, he knocked the ball out with his leg. That, Morelli said, meant the pass was incomplete. But yesterday, the N.F.L.'s vice president for officiating, Mike Pereira, saw it differently. "The definition of a catch - or in this case an interception - states that in the process of making the catch, a player must maintain possession of the ball after he contacts the ground," he said in a statement. "The initial call on the field was that Troy Polamalu intercepted the pass because he maintained possession of the ball after hitting the ground. The replay showed that Polamalu had rolled over and was rising to his feet when the ball came loose. He maintained possession long enough to establish a catch. Therefore, the replay review should have upheld the call on the field that it was a catch and fumble." The overturned call so incensed Steelers linebacker Joey Porter that he accused the officials of trying to steal the game from the Steelers because they wanted Manning to win the Super Bowl. Yesterday, the Steelers declined to comment on the league's statement. It was not the first time the N.F.L. said an official made a mistake in a game, although public admissions are rare. Three years ago, Pereira said officials should have called pass interference against San Francisco on the final play of a wild-card game with the Giants. The 49ers won, 39-38. Had that call been made correctly, the Giants would have had a second chance to kick a winning field goal. On Sunday, as it turned out, the botched call did not affect the outcome of the game, although it stood out on a weekend with numerous eyebrow-raising officiating decisions. In the New England Patriots' loss to Denver on Saturday, the Broncos' first touchdown was set up by a questionable pass-interference penalty against cornerback Asante Samuel. That gave the Broncos the ball at the 1, and they scored one play later. In the fourth quarter in Indianapolis, officials could not seem to decide whether the Steelers had committed a false start or whether the Colts had jumped offside, so they called nothing - even though one or the other must have happened because two Colts crossed the line before the snap. Pittsburgh Coach Bill Cowher called that noncall bizarre. Greg Aiello, the N.F.L.'s vice president for public relations, said, "We had four exciting games, including some excitement surrounding a few officiating calls." http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/17/sports/f...v5FyVmUFXejuVNg Good. I just hope I don't have to see Pete Morelli and his crew for the rest of the playoffs. Almost as outrageous as that call was the way they got pushed around by players during that game.
January 18, 200620 yr Where the hell has Ed Hochuli been this postseason? They better be saving him for the Super Bowl or something, because he wouldn't let s*** like that go down on his watch
January 18, 200620 yr Where the hell has Ed Hochuli been this postseason? They better be saving him for the Super Bowl or something, because he wouldn't let s*** like that go down on his watch Working his biceps.
January 18, 200620 yr Where the hell has Ed Hochuli been this postseason? They better be saving him for the Super Bowl or something, because he wouldn't let s*** like that go down on his watch He will be reffing this weekend or the Super Bowl.
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