Friggin Steelers

[Wood]

What does Cowler and Cooley (?) do to make officials disregard the rules of football when they take the field? Apparently, they are allowed to move the goal line to wherever they want it so their big non helmit wearing quarterback can just "get close"; fall down and have fake offensive pass interference called; get a mystery hold called in their favor to squash a drive; and NOW they don't need to stay in bounds or allow opponents to challenge plays.

I guess the rest of the league will get to feel what it is like to be a Seahawk. I may have some bitterness issues to resolve..........

[NCGolfer]

and NOW they don't need to stay in bounds or allow opponents to challenge plays.

If Saban wouldn't throw like a girl they would have gotten the challenge in. He was waffling like a politician as well. The refs are going to make mistakes. The coach is allowed to leave the 'box' to throw the flag in front of the line judge or umpire in that situation.

Keep in mind this is coming from a Browns fan.

I guess the rest of the league will get to feel what it is like to be a Seahawk.

I guess you didn't watch the AFC Championship game last year. The refs did everything in their power to get Indy into the title game.

Like I said, officials are part of the game and are prone to mistakes. Sure, some might seem bigger than others, but I don't think it cost the Seahawks the Super Bowl. I blame Jerramy Stevens' hands more.

I may have some bitterness issues to resolve..........

Bitter? Try having your team yanked from you for 5 years. That will leave you bitter. Or pretty pissed.

[Thrash13]

Nick Saban didn't want to challenge that call. He barely threw the flag, so the official wouldn't see it. Then he could have an excuse that he threw it and was screwed out of the call. It was pretty clear Saban wasn't very confident by his actions.

The Steelers are good. I don't care for them a whole lot, but they are good.

[iacas]

What does Cowler and Cooley (?)

Who's Cooley? I know who you meant with Cowher... but Cooley?

Apparently, they are allowed to move the goal line to wherever they want it so their big non helmit wearing quarterback can just "get close";

From the replays, it looked to me as if the ball crossed the plane, then he was pushed back (while still in the air).

fall down

???

and have fake offensive pass interference called;

The Seahawk in the SB pushed off RIGHT IN FRONT of the ref. He "gained separation" which is how the rule, I believe, is worded.

get a mystery hold called in their favor to squash a drive;

The holding on that call was obscene (and thus the call justified). You're still talking about the SB, I guess. Plus, that particular lineman was warned to watch the holding several times prior to that.

and NOW they don't need to stay in bounds or allow opponents to challenge plays.

The refs didn't see the challenge flag. It's not like they saw it and said "no, we don't want to let you challenge." Saban didn't get the attention of a ref.

I guess the rest of the league will get to feel what it is like to be a Seahawk. I may have some bitterness issues to resolve..........

Seems that you do man. Let it go. The Seahawks and Steelers both had their C game in the Super Bowl, but the better team won.

And Dave, the Indy game wasn't the AFCC. That was Denver. But yeah, we got jobbed in that game SEVERAL times. No team in the league has been officially apologized to more than the Steelers for bad ref calls. They average about five letters from the NFL every year. Last year they got seven official apologies.

[Wood]

No team in the league has been officially apologized to more than the Steelers for bad ref calls. They average about five letters from the NFL every year. Last year they got seven official apologies.

They did not an apology for the Superbowl, unlike Seattle. I thought the Cooley Family owned the Steelers, but didn't know, hence the question mark.

I don't think the better tem won, I think the Steelers got hot a a great time. However, I really hope that the Steekers make it back to the Superbowl for a rematch this year. Good luck for every game but 1 for the rest of the year.

[Thrash13]

I'm not sure where it came from, but my Ravens played one of the best games they have played in a long time yesterday against the Buccaneers. I was expecting a tough battle and possibly a loss, but they shut them down 27-0.

They may be back to the hard-nosed defense of five or six years ago. I like what I see so far.

[sole wolf]

They did not an apology for the Superbowl, unlike Seattle. I thought the Cooley Family owned the Steelers, but didn't know, hence the question mark.

your beloved hawks almost got beat by the Lions. That is what I call a bad call.

[Rafcin]

...fall down and have fake offensive pass interference called...

it happens, hopefully goes both ways and eventually evens out. My dear NYG were robbed of a HUGE first down due to offensive pass interference call. It happend late in the game yesterday, when the Indy's CB simply tripped over his own feet...

IMHO the weakest part of call challange/review system is exclusion of the "judgment calls". Way too many 'non-reviewable' mistakes are still being made.

[Rafcin]

...my Ravens played one of the best games they have played in a long time...

it's sure nice to have a QB for a change, huh?

[Thrash13]

My dear NYG were robbed of a HUGE first down due to offensive pass interference call.

That one was definitely a screwy call, although I was cheering for the Colts.

The Giants just shot themselves in the foot too many times to recover. I guess they kinda deserved the bad call because of all the false starts and stuff they committed. Good game nonetheless. As for the Raven's QB situation, it's definitely nice to have McNair in the house.

[iacas]

They did not an apology for the Superbowl, unlike Seattle. I thought the Cooley Family owned the Steelers, but didn't know, hence the question mark.

They did not an apology? The Super Bowl was a well-called game. Nobody got an apology. On the NFL Network, the head of the referees vouched for each of the calls. Two or three weeks prior, after the Pit-Indy game, he pointed out several bad calls, all against Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh, as I said, has gotten more official apologies from the league for bad calls that affected or possibly affected games than any other team in the league.

The Rooneys own the Steelers.

I don't think the better tem won, I think the Steelers got hot a a great time.

Any of the teams in the AFC playoffs could have beaten any of the teams in the NFC playoffs that year. Clearly you define "better team" differently than just about everyone - the Steelers were clearly the favorites.

This was roughly the same Steelers team, you'll recall, that have a quarterback who is 27-4 and who went 15-1 the year before (and lost that only game because Mommy Maddox started and was injured too late in the game for Ben to do much). The Steelers were the better team and made plays when they had to.

However, I really hope that the Steekers make it back to the Superbowl for a rematch this year. Good luck for every game but 1 for the rest of the year.

I don't think the Seahawks will make it back. You're assuming quite a bit...

[golfchief]

Bad breaks? try being a (homer) LIONS fan. How many late hits to get a call if your a lion. They did not call one late hit against the hawks for a late hit and almost every time they tackled a lion a player would get a late hit in.
It's bad enough to lose but NO team should lose because of bad or no call penalites.
The refs make good money and if the league sends a apologetic letter to a team the ref making the call should get two weeks off with out pay. If it happens three times in a season they lose their job.(which their not doing) The must make all the calls against both teams on the field.

[iacas]

The refs make good money and if the league sends a apologetic letter to a team the ref making the call should get two weeks off with out pay. If it happens three times in a season they lose their job.(which their not doing) The must make all the calls against both teams on the field.

NFL refs make very, very little money.

[golfchief]

$1,431.00 minimum each regular season game. for 5hrs work seems to be pretty good money.

[GoingfortheGreen]

They did not an apology for the Superbowl, unlike Seattle. I thought the Cooley Family owned the Steelers, but didn't know, hence the question mark.

The Steelers are owned by the "Rooney" family - first by Art Rooney; then by his son (Dan); and now the grandson Art II is running the show.

Oh, and one more thing - the Steelers are Super Bowl Champs for 2005. Let it go -- there are many 'questionable' calls each week in the NFL, and they will continue to be....if you're want instant replay on each and every play, lobby the NFL Rules Committee to approve it, and be ready for 8-hour long games

[iacas]

$1,431.00 minimum each regular season game. for 5hrs work seems to be pretty good money.

The quote below comes from

this article :

It's kinda crazy that a multi-billion dollar organization has part time employees that are so crucial to the game, and they make next to nothing. These guys deserve to earn enough money not to have to work another job at the very least.

Five hours doesn't account for the entire weekend you've spent away from your family. And if an NFL ref works 16 weeks at $1500/game, wow, he can almost get out of poverty!

Almost all NFL refs have other jobs. I don't define $1,431 for an entire weekend as "well-paid." $4,330 (the 20-year vet rate, I believe) is better, but still doesn't cut it. But hey, I think the NFL should have full-time refs, so...

[Finn07]

IMO the Super Bowl was called fairly last year and I am not a Steeler Fan or Seahawk fan. The true travesty was the Colts-Steelers game in the AFC Championship game. The Steelers had every horrible call go against them and they still won the game. That officiating from that game was a complete joke.

[Wood]

I don't think the Seahawks will make it back. You're assuming quite a bit...

I really don't think the Steelers will make it back, that was the most "reaching" assumption I was making.