“The replay official cannot rule on possession of the football under any circumstances. ”

Not true – thought you’d want to know.

From an NFL statement about the play:

“Replay Official Howard Slavin stopped the game for an instant replay review. The aspects of the play that were reviewable included if the ball hit the ground and who had possession of the ball. In the end zone, a ruling of a simultaneous catch is reviewable. That is not the case in the field of play, only in the end zone.”

As I said in an earlier post – I have no problem with the ref’s call at full speed – that’s how it looked to him, and he called it as he saw it. But on replay – it could have been – and probably SHOULD have been – clearly stated to the ref that simultaneous possession had not occurred and the call therefore overturned.

Anyway – you’re right – time to move on.

The replay official cannot rule on possession of the football under any circumstances. The replay official had no grounds to determine possession of the football, nor could he say GB had the ball and Seattle did not. It is not within his authority to make a call on possession.

So, quit saying “the replay official said it was good”. Truth is, the replay official told the Referee that he could not make a judgement on posession because the rules state he cannot. The play stood as called because the call was made as a touchdown on the field and couldnt be reviewed. No review, no reversal. The call on the field was wrong and that is that. The replay official only looked at whether or not the pass was incomplete. It never touched the ground so the play stood as called on the field.

Furthermore, the back judge and side judge didnt discuss the play as they had seen it prior to making the call. It appears to me that the side judge threw up his arms because he thought the back judge was signalling touchdown. It is obvious that the back judge was signalling for the play to end on a clock stoppage with a change of possession as a touchback.

Anyway, it is what it is. Week 3 is over and week 4 is underway.

The NFL rules governing simultaneous possession are very precise & carved in stone. Neither you or side judge Lance Easley can alter them to suit your wishes. He erred in his call(s), (don’t forget about the missed offensive pass interference, also). This is the 2nd forum on which I have witnessed your posts and all I can say is you & Mr Easley are either ignorant, delusional or in denial of the rules.

I have the NFL package and have watched many games. The level of competence by the replacements was atrocious. The game was too fast and too big for them. Every game I watched had horrible calls, phantom calls, etc. The game I watched on Monday night was the worst officiated game I have ever seen. The calls were bad for both sides. As a Packer fan, I was actually mortified at some of the calls that went against Seattle. The players on each team looked confused, like they didn’t know what was going to happen next. The last play was one of the worst calls in NFL history.

But I don’t blame the replacement refs. I blame Goodell and the owners for penny pinching with the lowest paid people on the playing field and thinking that rank amateurs could officiate in a billion dollar business. No matter what happens with the Packers the rest of the year, this season has been tainted for me.

But that’s not what the rules of the NFL say. The rules say, “It is not a simultaneous catch if a player gains control first and an opponent subsequently gains joint control.” So Jennings didn’t need to have possession with either two feet or a body part on the ground. He just needed to have control of the ball first and then possession.

Madbears fan read the story before you post.

And if you want positive Mr. Easley, you won’t have to pay for a cup of coffee in Seattle for a long time.