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Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan
02-05-2006, 10:14 PM
I have to say, I've not watched a worse officiated football game in a long time, the fact that this is a "Super Bowl" game just blows my mind.

I came into this game hoping for a good game, I could not make my mind up who to root for!

Half way through this game, I was firmly behind the Hawks, why? Well when you are playing 12 against 11 it is just not fair.

Unbelievable, totally stupid.

The Steelers did not play that great, some "Gimmick" plays that were neat for sure, but the number of BS flags thrown against the Hawks was unreal.

Quite the shame to see a good team like the Steelers have to win by being helped by the 12th man.

TOTAL BS.

I think I'll go back to watching golf.....

Utterly disgusted in the officiating in Tokyo, I should have gone down to the Dungeon and cut up some wood, or even cut my finger off, it would have been more enjoyable than watching this crap.

Congrats on the Steelers in getting this far, too bad in a lot of fan's minds this win will always have an "*" beside it (12th man win).

:mad:

Frank Chaffee
02-05-2006, 10:23 PM
Gonna get it tonight....!

Good Stu,
You’ll feel much better then.
Frank

Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan
02-05-2006, 10:25 PM
Actually only part of it came, a shipping snafu.... :mad:

Christopher Pine
02-05-2006, 10:34 PM
While I share your sentiments in general about some of the calls... The steelers won this game! Not the refs

Chris

Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan
02-05-2006, 10:55 PM
Yes I understand that, and yes that is true, but the refs changed so many things in favor or the Steelers it is not funny.

How many times did we see close calls go the Steelers way?

about 100% of the time.

I harbour no ill feelings towards the Steelers, they played well, for sure, they came back from almost not making the playoffs, but to say the refs had nothing to do with the outcome of the game is unrealistic, IMHO.

Again, just to be clear, my rant and wrath is aimed at poor officiating, anyone who plays and loves sports cannot like a poorly called game, even if it is in favour of your team, if you are honest about it.

Cheers!

Jarrod Nelson
02-05-2006, 11:07 PM
Not a well called game. No single glaring mistake, but like you said, everything went the Steelers way.

Still. . . a pretty fun game to watch.

Jerry Olexa
02-05-2006, 11:22 PM
Agree w most of your thoughts but call on fumble by Seattle QB went to Seattle after review if I recall. Not the best played or officiated game...

Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan
02-05-2006, 11:27 PM
Agree w most of your thoughts but call on fumble by Seattle QB went to Seattle after review if I recall. Not the best played or officiated game...
Thanks Jerry, but the fumble should have NEVER been called, this just shows the extent of the poor officiating, kids in Pee Wee football know that when your knees hit the ground, if you are in possession of the football, it is not a fumble, the ground CANNOT cause a fumble. The fact that the Hawks had to risk one of their time outs to even challenge that ruling was surreal.

Again, so the Steeler's fans don't get on my back, I'm taking nothing away from the Steelers, I'm just sorry that the game was marred by this, and the Steelers will have to listen to the 12th man argument, they should not have to, the refs have added an asterisk to this game for a lot of fans, which is too bad for the Steelers.

Cheers!

Brad Schmid
02-06-2006, 12:37 AM
Hey Stu,

Being in a far away time zone and all, I can only guess you don't get to watch a whole lot of games, but if you think this one was bad, you should have been watching all season long:rolleyes: . This one actually wasn't anywhere near as bad as some in previous weeks. For instance, when Pittsburgh played Indy, the League actually had to publically come out and admit what a horrible call the stripes made on an interception play. I think they even penalized the referee by making him ineligible for post season for some period of time.

Cheers

BTW - hope you get the rest of your spinny parts soon ;)

Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan
02-06-2006, 12:47 AM
I've watched most of the play off games, but we don't get them live, we get them about a week late, and they are all chopped up into a "Digest" version, you know, a highlights reel, (45 minute Football game :eek:).

The Japanese commentators will not comment on anything controversial, I remember that call you are talking about, they did not mention it, and it was NOT in the highlight reel game....:mad:

Sorry for the rant guys, but to see this kind of poor workmanship in the stripes, it really.......

well you know...... ;) :D

Jeff Sudmeier
02-06-2006, 8:44 AM
Thanks Jerry, but the fumble should have NEVER been called, this just shows the extent of the poor officiating, kids in Pee Wee football know that when your knees hit the ground, if you are in possession of the football, it is not a fumble, the ground CANNOT cause a fumble. The fact that the Hawks had to risk one of their time outs to even challenge that ruling was surreal.

Cheers!

I didn't have a huge problem with that call... missing the steeler's hand on the QB would have been very easy, I missed it at full speed. The call made before review was that he was down but hadn't been touched... if a steeler hadn't touched him it would have been a fumble.

As far as the steeler's touchdown that was reviewed, we will never know.. there wasn't enough evidence to over turn the call. I don't think it was a TD, but you just couldn't tell. If they would have ruled him down and then reviewed it, he would have been called down. Just not a clear enough picture.

Keel McDonald
02-06-2006, 9:10 AM
I didn't have a huge problem with that call... missing the steeler's hand on the QB would have been very easy, I missed it at full speed. The call made before review was that he was down but hadn't been touched... if a steeler hadn't touched him it would have been a fumble.

As far as the steeler's touchdown that was reviewed, we will never know.. there wasn't enough evidence to over turn the call. I don't think it was a TD, but you just couldn't tell. If they would have ruled him down and then reviewed it, he would have been called down. Just not a clear enough picture.

What Jeff said! The ground CAN INFACT cause a fumble, just not in the process of being tackled. And as far as the call on the goal line regarding the Steeler's controversial touchdown, it was a touchdown. Don't get me wrong, I was pulling for the Seahawks, but it was a touchdown. The really bad call, however, came on the Seattle catch at the 1 yard line. There was no hold whatsoever, just good blocking. In my opinion, that could have changed the game entirely. jmho.

Jarrod Nelson
02-06-2006, 1:28 PM
The Steeler's 13th man could have been the clock and the 'Hawks miss use of it. Ok, Hasselbeck isn't Aikman, Marino, Elway, Favre or Montana, but I would expect a Holmgren team to manage the 2 minute drill better then that. All those passing plays across the middle, audibles, sending in new plays, etc. Crazy.

JayStPeter
02-06-2006, 2:12 PM
I'm with you Stu. I didn't really care who won the game. But after the 'Hawks got called for the non-holding call to take back a pass that got them to the 1, then got penalized 15 yards for Hasselbeck making a tackle after the ensuing interception, I decided to root for them. I've only watched 6 or 7 games this season, but I don't think I've seen as many turned around calls (or just bad calls) in all those games combined as this one. Also, what was up with the Umpire jumping into a pile of players???:confused:
Overall, a poorly played game (by both teams) with extremely bad officiating.

Jay

Norman Hitt
02-06-2006, 2:15 PM
Stu, I have to agree with you 100%. I played football in school, and have been a lifelong fan, but I've been really disappointed, (even Disgusted) at the quality of officiating for the recent years, (this year in particular), and yesterdays game was certainly no exception. It seems to be getting worse instead of better. Some games this year I got so disgusted I just turned off the TV and went to the shop. I just wish they would review the games afterward, and penalize the refs, (monetarily), like they do the players for blatant infractions, and just maybe.........we would begin to see a better quality and consistancy in officiating.

Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan
02-07-2006, 4:16 AM
Some one else agrees with us guys....


Refs were far from Super in this one
Kevin Hench / FOXSports.com

This is the space where I get to crow about the frightening precision of my Super Bowl prediction.

Where I get to remind everyone that I guaranteed the Steelers would win the title after they beat the Colts. That they were the only championship-caliber team among the final four. That they would dismantle the Broncos in Denver and waylay whomever the NFC sent at them.

This is the space where I get to wag a finger at my colleague Ian O'Connor, with whom I'd waged a dueling columns battle of opposing prognostication. He picked the Seahawks and made a very strong case for them.

This is the space where I get to say, I told ya so. But I won't. I can't.

I've never felt so empty being right. I feel dirty. I wish I'd been wrong. The Steelers did not deserve to win this game. They were not the better team. O'Connor was right. Seattle was the better team.

So, Paul Tagliabue, how does a team lose when it outgains an opponent by 57 yards, controls time of possession and wins the turnover battle?

Like a crazed CIA analyst running through the halls of Langley screaming into open offices about some impending calamity, I've been shrieking hysterically about the terrible officiating in the NFL and warning that some day the brutal calls were going to affect the outcome of the Super Bowl.

That some day was Sunday.

Every single questionable, marginal or outright bad call went against the Seahawks.

Their first three big plays were all wiped out by penalty calls. On their second drive, Darrell Jackson caught an 18-yard pass on 3rd-and-6 that would have given Seattle a first down at the 23. But Chris Gray was called for holding James Farrior. When Farrior pushed upfield, Gray did hook him with his right arm, and Farrior went down. When referee Bill Leavy flagged Gray, it was a bad omen for the Seahawks. Instead of being on the edge of the red zone, they came away without any points.

On their third drive, the Seahawks looked to take a 7-0 lead when Jackson separated from Chris Hope in the end zone and Matt Hasselbeck delivered a perfect strike to his outside shoulder. The back judge looked uncertain — sound familiar, Patriots fans? — then finally jerked his flag out and called offensive pass interference to wipe out the touchdown. The replay showed receiver and defender hand-fighting, with Jackson getting the slightest push into Hope's chest before turning to catch the ball. ABC's John Madden thought the call was dubious. FOX analyst and all-time great offensive lineman Brian Baldinger had no doubts, calling it "absolutely horrendous" on his FOXSports.com Super Bowl Instant Analysis. ESPN's Steve Young and Michael Irvin also had no uncertainty, dismissing the call as ticky-tack and insisting the Seahawks got robbed of a TD.

Then came a huge call on the first play of the second quarter. Peter Warrick ripped off a 33-yard punt return to give Seattle the ball at the Steelers 46. But Etric Pruitt was called for holding. How clear was it? Well, Madden thought the call was for Pruitt holding the gunner at the beginning of the play. It wasn't. The flag came in during the runback and it looked pretty minor. Another example of an official searching to make a call.

So despite totally dominating the first 20 minutes of the game, the Seahawks led only 3-0.

Then came Pittsburgh's first touchdown. Whether you think Roethlisberger broke the plane of the goal line seems to depend on which team you were rooting for. The odd part was the line judge seemed to have determined that Big Ben had come up short as he ran in from the sideline. Since Roethlisberger had been pushed back well short of the goal line I don't know what he could have seen as he got closer to the pile that would have made him change his mind. But up went the arms. Had Roethlisberger been ruled short of the plane, that call would no doubt have stood too. But you figure the Black and Gold would have pounded it in from the two-inch line on fourth down so there's not that much here for Seattle fans to complain about except for the continuing storyline that every single call was going the Steelers' way. And the worst was yet to come.

The Seahawks were on the verge of taking a 17-14 lead early in the fourth quarter when officiating disaster struck. Hasselbeck had drilled a pass down the seam to Jerramy Stevens to set up first-and-goal at the one when suddenly Leavy appeared in the middle of the screen to call the play back on account of holding on Sean Locklear. No less a source than newly minted Hall of Famer John Madden came right out and said it was a bad call. This penalty was beyond ticky-tack. Baldinger called it "another terrible call" and added that the Steelers were offsides on the play. It was yet another official searching for a call, desperate to throw his flag, yearning to impact the action. Why, why, oh, why? That's 14 points the officials simply took away from the Seahawks. Incredible.

After a sack, Hasselbeck threw a pick and then was penalized 15 yards for making the tackle. I'm not kidding. The same thing happened in the Indy-Pittsburgh game in the regular season. It's like the officials become so discombobulated during the change of possession that they just randomly start throwing flags. The call was that Hasselbeck had thrown an illegal block below the waist on the return. Never mind that Hasselbeck wasn't trying to block anybody and did, in fact, make the tackle. Just another terrible call that cannot be reviewed in Paul Tagliabue's NFL.

The Steelers took quick advantage of their enhanced field position and just like that it was 21-10 Pittsburgh when it should have been 17-14 Seattle.

But the stripes weren't done.

First, they blew a fumble call on the field — of course against Seattle — before overturning it after replay. Then, with the Steelers trying to run out the clock, Leavy granted Roethlisberger a timeout, even though the play clock clearly read zero before the quarterback signaled for time. It ended up being the final bad call in Seattle's coffin.

As Madden and Al Michaels watched the replay they shared a laugh about a similar bad non-call in an earlier playoff game between the Bears and Panthers. This is what it has come to: Announcers comparing the bad calls happening before them to the bad calls from earlier rounds of the playoffs. Is this really what the NFL wants?

Did the refs get this Ben Roethlisberger touchdown call right? It's certainly up for debate.

With Cris Collinsworth lobbying for pass interference to be eligible for review on Inside the NFL after New England got jobbed in Denver; Joey Porter inveighing against the league after the game in Indy; Young and Irvin railing at halftime of the Super Bowl; Baldinger being spot-on with his Instant Analysis critique of the officials; and Madden and Michaels wondering aloud about the officiating during the game ... is anybody in the league office listening?

Or can we pretty much count on next year's playoffs being dominated by the officials too?

Jesse Merino
02-07-2006, 7:28 AM
Hmmm usually, its the Crowd that is the 12th man...

This puts the stripes as the 13th man...

The clock as the 14th man....

This post is just getting out of hand... LOL!!!

I'm with you... looked like a "hotel game" all the way...
The Officiating was in the Steelers favor, and me? I dont care either way...In fact, its the first football game I have watched in, hmmm three years? Yep, must be about it... Tragedy and travesty is what it was...

Now I remember why I quit watching it al together, and the Commercials, which I wanted to watch, wasnt worth, waiting for either...sheesh!!...Jesse

Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan
02-07-2006, 8:18 AM
Hmmm usually, its the Crowd that is the 12th man...

This puts the stripes as the 13th man...

The clock as the 14th man....

This post is just getting out of hand... LOL!!!

I'm with you... looked like a "hotel game" all the way...
The Officiating was in the Steelers favor, and me? I dont care either way...In fact, its the first football game I have watched in, hmmm three years? Yep, must be about it... Tragedy and travesty is what it was...

Now I remember why I quit watching it al together, and the Commercials, which I wanted to watch, wasnt worth, waiting for either...sheesh!!...Jesse

All very true Jesse, very true.

Cheers!

Steve Ash
02-07-2006, 8:34 AM
The only thing I can say is GO PACK!!!!:D

I can be optimistic can't I?

John Miliunas
02-07-2006, 9:08 AM
Yeah...What Steve said! :D

As for the game itself, I agree with those who said that neither team performed to the levels they normally operate at. But, at the same time, the officials were certainly not performing to acceptable standards, either. :eek: It didn't matter much to me which team came out on top but, I guess if I were a Steeler fan, I'm not sure I could hold my head up too high based on that particular game. There were just too many questionable calls by the refs, which by the accounts of numerous folks, literally handed PA 14 points. In the end, for many people, it will remain the "Super Bowl handed to the Steelers by the refs". And, to that end, I am quite disappointed in Holmgren's "disappearance" at the end of the game. I somehow don't think it was the fault of the Steeler's coaching staff that the calls went the way they did and he should've offered his hand to the team who was, at least, able to get that far in the first place.:) :cool:

Jerry Olexa
02-07-2006, 10:23 AM
Some one else agrees with us guys....

WOW!! That is a strong, well-documented article. I agree on poor officiating but he might be a bit over the top. NOT a great or even good Super Bowl (like most):)

Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan
02-07-2006, 2:29 PM
WOW!! That is a strong, well-documented article. I agree on poor officiating but he might be a bit over the top. NOT a great or even good Super Bowl (like most):)

That is why I posted it, I thought it was better said than I could say it, and I did not have to torture you guys with my lousy prose.... :o

Cheers!:D