Jerome Boger's crew is consistently an embarassment to the NFL. I know there will be a lot of discussion about the Cruz play and I'll keep my comments pretty short on that - it is probably the one call they actually got right! Cruz made no effort to advance the ball and I'm surprised the Cards are going to bitch so loudly on that - they didn't make a play - they are hoping to just be rewarded by another player's carelessness. That aside, the officiating was a joke.
- Opening kickoff, there is a scuffle after the play and a Cardinal player throws a punch. Giant who was punched runs off the field clapping, thinking a penalty is coming. None does.
- Second half kickoff - Cards return to the 27. Maybe this is where the wonders of TV make Boger look worse, but it is said that the Cards get a delay of game call. Ball is at the 22 now, BUT it is still 1st and 10. First down is a fumble, that I thought the Giants recovered (I might be wrong). Boger's crew rules the runner down, but spots the ball where the Giants recovered, giving them 3 extra yards.
- Coughlin is charged with a time-out even though he makes the call while the Cards throw a challenge flag. You are only supposed to be given a timeout if a challenge is made DURING a timeout. Otherwise, you are supposed to be give the timeout back.
- Snee was getting away with holding all game long, yet the one they chose to call looked like he actually erred by releasing the guy without holding, giving the defender a clear path to Eli.
- Bernard is called for roughing because it LOOKED like his helmet was going to strike the QB.
- We had a series where Snee and Hynoski were called for holds on back to back plays and on the ensuing drive the Cards visibly hold the jerseys of Joseph and Osi on back to back plays as they are releasing to rush the QB and yet neither is called. Both non-holds affect the play since the defenders were delayed just enough to miss a sack.
- Ball spots for both teams were poor, consistently being spotted almost a yeard from where they should have been. Even though it was a moot point, even on the review of Ballard's first possible TD, he is clearly at the 1/2 yard line or closer and they rule he was down at the 1.
Boger's crew needs to seriously be looked at by the NFL. Unfortunately, they will probably draw the most fire for making the right call on the most visible play - but if that's what it will take to get them out, I'd take it.
A bad, bad game where calls afffected both teams adversely.
I agree on all counts. I screamed that he threw a punch. I rewound it for my wife to see. How does the official not see his head snap to the side.
I don't really care about those being called, but I do if it's not being called both ways.
Hopefully he will be coached to "stay down" once he is on the ground in a situation like that so others can't interpret that he was trying to continue to advance the ball, or risk having the ball stripped out.
As for TC's timeout and the challenge, FOX had a replay that showed TC calling timeout as the flag was being thrown. You are only supposed to be charged with a timeout if the challenge is made after the play is stopped due to a timeout. If they happen at or near the same time, the challenge supercedes the timeout.
Hard to tell but you can't argue that TC wanted a TO there and he asked for it AND he didn't see the red flag so charging us for it hardly seems unreasonable.
Greenwich is a nice place though - congrats on being from there.
In a game just last year, Belichick got a timeout back when Ryan challenged a play during the timeout. The explanation given on the field was that the challenge flag was thrown before the timeout had been officially recorded. How a timeout can be recorded and written down in a split second is hard for me to comprehend, but is further instance of how Boger's team cannot control a game.
I also don't know if I can deal with another game called by Daryl Johnston.
Those are two of the most asinine statements I have ever heard.
Before Eli's heroics we were about to lose a game that should have been someting like a 24-6 Giants win. And we would have been listening to a good portion of the BBI tell us that officials don't decide outcomes of football games.
Jerome Boger and his crew are always bad... I cringed the first time I saw him yesterday and it got worse from there.
Also, he seems to lack any common sense. Why would the Giants take 3 points of the board and re-kick a field goal with a kicker who is on the ground in pain?
They truly sucked yesterday, but the calls tended to even out.
Worst officiating game since a 2003 game I attended in Washington (15 penalties against the Giants and 17 against the Redskins).
I thought that was one of the poorest officiated games I've seen in a long time. So many calls they missed and so many call they did make were poor calls. Not one sided particularly, just inept.
Why would the Giants take 3 points of the board with no time left on the clock before the half!! Unless they were trailing at the end of teh game, they'd almost always take the 3 and head to the locker room.
I think I was still trying to figure out how the Cards had a 1st and 10 after being called for delay of game.