That ref who called holding on Woodson should be fired immediately after this game. Woodson was nowhere near Gates when the ball arrived and Gates initiated the initial contact. It prolonged the drive and gave the Chargers 3 points in a close ballgame.

The NYJ/BUF game today was pretty awful with several blown calls on defensive PIs and an instant replay overturn on evidence that certainly didn't seem indisputable, and Ed Hochuli was the ref. Do goofy officiating spots just follow this guy around or is there something else going on?

refs reffing tonight

Why was Desean's catch nullified by a taunting penalty after the play? I've seen instances where a player gets taunting or a personal foul after a TD and the penalty is just enforced on the kickoff. It doesn't nullify the TD. It doesn't make any sense.

Mike Pereira said on his twitter that live ball fouls and dead ball fouls offset. So basically the Giants were rewarded for the hands to the face penalty unless the taunting penalty by itself nullifies Jackson's catch and takes it all the way back. I don't see how that would happen though since the taunting is a dead ball foul. If there is no hands to the face penalty to offset with the taunting then wouldn't Jackson's catch stand and the taunting be enforced from where Jackson was down?

There was a play in the SF/AZ game that confused me. SF's QB was sacked just as he threw the ball. The ball traveled 11 yards backwards and went out of bounds. The ref ruled that it was an incomplete forward pass. AZ challenged the call. Seems there were two grounds for it. 1) if his arm was still going backward, it was a fumble, not a forward pass; 2) if his arm was going forward, it was a lateral, not a forward pass.

The ref reviewed it and upheld it, saying it was a forward pass. Perrera went on the broadcast and said that the intention of the play was a forward pass, it doesn't matter that the ball actually traveled backwards.

It thus appears that the refs made the "correct" call. But it makes no rational sense. The QB tried to throw the ball. The ball went backwards. Why isn't it a lateral instead of a forward pass? Isn't that a lot simpler than determining the intention of the QB?

it sure sounds that way to me. the NFL has a lot of terrible rules, IMO. for instance, a personal foul penalty taken by the offense at the end of a half used to be no penalty at all - there was nothing in place to penalize the offending team.

all personal fouls before a kickoff should be enforced after the return, putting it on the 50 is meaningless and an invitation to cheap shot

fyp, also I agree with what you said as well .

I really do not understand this rule, especially since I'm pretty sure Aaron Brooks threw a pass completely backwards about 10 years ago that was called a fumble. Seems like a case of the refs stepping on their own dicks, but I'm just a Johnny Casualfan.

Edit: I guess the difference was Alex Smith got hit while Aaron Brooks didn't, but it still seems like a silly rule

Aaron Brooks was an ELIte Madden QB in like '04 or '03. Raiders were sick good with him and Moss.

that seems really ****ing stupid. im sure philip rivers intention isnt to throw an interception every other play but it still counts

i was going to mention this in my post also.

Is there any possible reason the Desean Jackson taunt was called offsetting despite clearly happening after the play was over?

lol no way that is the rule. they are just making it up as they go along.

The other difference is that Brooks "intended" to throw the ball backwards, even though the only guy back there was a lineman.

Because that is what the rule states should happen.

It is a dumb rule, happened with Chambers on the Dolphins a while back too. They made a 5 yard delay of game penalty when WRs spun the ball after they caught it. There was a 40+ yrd pass play where he spun the ball, but the other team was offside on the snap. If the other team was not offside it would have been an X-5 yard gain where X is some big play. The other team is essentially rewarded for their penalty as the play doesn't stand. Really a dumb rule.

The ball going backward is also a stupid rule as it conflicts with a QB's arm getting hit. If the arm is coming forward the ball can't go backward.

I agree it is a dumb rule and it doesn't make much sense. Not the referee's fault though.

good post

I would add that there is little accountability as well.
I think officials at the pro level should have to do post-game pressers for a few minutes after they've had time to review video of likely controversial plays.

In baseball every umpire has his own strike zone.

I like no harm, no foul. Stop calling pass inference where the ball isn't.

And show those replays in slow-mo and zoom it.

I favor putting DeSean in the penalty box. Out for the next 5 offensive plays.

I'm personally sick of poor calls in the past being used as the precedent for making calls in the future

1. Calvin Johnson caught that ball in Chicago last year in week 1.

Now, we've had to reinvent what it means to catch a ball to justify the incomplete call in that game.

2. Tuck rule bull****

It actually is the rule. Pereria cited the rule in his twitter feed. Rule 8, section 1, article 1. http://www.nfl.com/rulebook

Wait, you mean refs aren't just making **** up? They actually know a lot of even seemingly obscure rules? It's almost like the hate should be directed elsewhere.