I have to agree about the officiating being poor, not only in this game but in the entire playoffs this year. It is about time for the NFL to go with full-time officials. Pay them more, get them in film study 3-4 days a week, and for god's sake have a CREW work the playoffs, not the best(?) individuals at each position. With a 7-man crew, it is imperative that they be on the same page as far as mechanics go. The TD call, prolly correct to not overrule the call on the field, but it sure looked like the ball was short of the goal line. The PI, no way, unless they call the handcheck all season long. The holding, I don't see how the camera missed anything, the replay I saw followed the play from initial contact until the they disengaged, it was a good block. Did the results CAUSE the 'hawks to lose, no. Did they affect the outcome of the game? Of course, everything that happens on the field does that. They probably, IMO, had a greater affect than they should have. And why on earth did they need to burn a challenge on the Hasselbeck non-fumble? The BJ and/or SJ should have had eyes on the ballcarrier in that part of the field, and no way he was screened, the only official screened was the HL, and HE should have been watching away from the ball.
Super Bowl XL recap: Steelers made 3 plays, Seahawks shot themselves in the foot repeatedly, the refs sucked and had a HUGE influence in the outcome of the game towards the Steelers...
That's a good summary joecab
re: Pass Interference call I humbly disagree with most of the sentiment and think that while it was not a great call, it was not a crappy call. If you watch the play, pay attention to the defender's feet. You can see that the Hawks' push-off actually caused him to hop back a foot or so. My dad disagrees and thinks the guy lost his balance, but I think it was precisely because of the push-off that he lost his balance and was not able to make a play on the ball- hence the flag.
Well, this definitely does NOT go down as a "classic" with a great finish, but who can't smile at the way Bill Cowher got that Gatorade bath at the end of the game? As far as I'm concerned, Pittsburgh did NOT look that great at all. Statistically, Seattle DOMINATED. The difference in this game can be summarized by 5 GUTSY plays, plays that stand out above all others during this game: 1. Big Ben's toss where he basically 'toed' the line of scrimmage before hitting Hines Ward on a 3rd and REALLY long. 2. The interception of Seattle just as the Seahawks were about to score and take a 17-14 lead (that killed their momentum). 3. Big Ben's run for the TD that could have gone either way (my friends and I thought it was inconclusive and could have been either way). 4. The Willie Parker run was a killer to start the 3rd. The 'hawks didn't seem to recover from that gashing run. 5. The Randal El to Ward TD pass will always be rememberd as a phenemonal gadget play, but if not for Big Ben's huge block, that play goes nowhere. Ben should definitely consider playing linebacker if his arm ever gives out.
Oh, and speaking of blocks, I like the way the officials saw Hasselbeck "block" the ball-carrier afer the INT. And THAT isn't reviewable??!?! Tack on another 10. The pass shouldn't have needed to be thrown because there should have been no holding call a play or two earlier, instead you have Steelers 1 and 10 on their own 40 rather than Seattle 1 and goal from inside the 3....anyone still think the officials didn't influence the game?
jmd82, it was at best a no call in the biggest game of the year, a play that wouldn't be called in 90+ % of reg. season games and should not be called in this one. Lets get back to winning the games by the players on the field.
elovrich, you are absolutely correct. The big interception (and the joke penalty on the tackle) should never have occured. That was abosolutely not holding on the play that reversed the completion to the 3-yard line.
The refs didn't drop at least four passes, miss two field goals, or throw an interception. The Steelers played well enough to win, and we didn't. -- Matt Hasselbeck.
Matt Hasselback was, by far, the best football player in the game, as anybody would admit. However, even though I'm a Pats-fan, I have to say, that the Steelers would have beat the Seahawks despite the bad calls.
And if Hasselbeck had said anything else after the game, we would have had another topic for SpoFi.......Hasselbeck, Crybaby, or just a poor loser.........
That's Matt taking responsibility for what he did... Who's gonna take responsibility for the refs?
Unfortunately hbzflow, no one is going to take responsibility for the officiating. The NFL will do their obligatory inquiry of which nothing will come out of it. Never does, never will.
The Steelers played well enough to win, and we didn't. -- Matt Hasselbeck. Well, he's pretty much gotta say that, at least if he's half way intelligent. And he hasn't seen the tape yet, which will show much more than what he saw on the field. As I said earlier, it's the steeler's game. Good for Cowher. But there were enough questionable calls for the NFL to take a good look at the system. The questionable calls affected the game, just as seattle's time management and the gadget play. As a fan to deny that is to ignore it, and we shouldn't. Neither should the NFL.
BTW, I am not arguing that Pittsburgh would not have won the game. There were enough poor decisions and executions on the part of Seattle to have cost them the game without the poor officiating. I am speaking as a fan of the GAME and as an ex-professional sports official. The NFL needs to go with full-time officials. Not guys who have a primary career and officiate on the weekends. Film study, evaluations, good old-fashioned noggin sessions and "stump the ump" kaffeklatches, would make a world of difference.
Living here in Pittsburgh and of course, being a Steeler fan, I agree with the bad offciating. The PI was called correctly. Use the forearm and it would have never been called. Extend the arm and get flagged. The holding call was 50-50. I don't think it was the arm under the neck that got the call. It was when his arm came across the body and got his shoulder as he was starting to go by. The tackling under the knees was a bad call. The Steelers did enough to win. The Seahawks had their chances. It has been said many times that you have to lose a Championship before you can win one. We'll see what Seattle has next year. The trick play has been run 3 times this season. They are 3 for 3 with 3 TD's. It was a great NFL season. Looking forward to the 2006-07 season already.
When his arm came across the body, it was a continuation of the previous contact, this has not been holding in the NFL for nearly 10 years. The fact is, unless they plain got the number wrong (which is a possibility and if that is the case then all bets are off as there was no replay of any other player) then it was a poor call, one that had TREMENDOUS impact on the rest of the game.
Well I'm not a fan of either team, but the officating(sp) was clearly lousy. Why have great teams line up with refs that can't make the correct calls. Impossible to say who won or lost or easy to say ref's win, Steelers and Seahawks lose.
When I was awake it was fun to Watch. Was it me, or Was Al and John not fully fired up for the game? Maybe they were thinking too much about the future?
elovrich may have something with full time officials. Anyone that loves the game hates to see calls like the ones we saw tonight. What about the catch in the first half that was rule incomplete instead of a fumble? I saw the receiver take two steps yet nothing was said by commentators or coach challenge call
I just saw another replay of the holding call. The only thing I saw that they could have called is when his arm came across the body, his hand got a hold of the shoulder pad. It wasn't much but with the way the Steelers body swung around the corner it could have been seen as holding. I still say it was a 50-50 call. Being continuous is okay but that little thing could have been enough.
This was by far the worst Super Bowl EVER!!!!! I could care less for either team. Who ever in here post that the officiating did not favor Pittsburgh you might want to reconsider watching football. You have to understand that the plays that are being called reflect what the scoreboard reads. To stop bettis not once but twice 2-3 yards away from a TD is momentum building. Then to CLEARLY stop rothlisberger on 3rd and short and have a play called a TD is just dumbfounding. Then you have a Td called back for a tictac touch not push a touch. WOW.... Warrick's punt return to the steelers 40 just to have it called back for a nonexistand holding call (even Al Michael's called BS on the the hold) Once again kills your momentum. Hasselbeck's so called blcok below the waist .....extra 15 yrds...1 play later your in seahawk territory. 2 plays later gadet play TD. The final score could have easily read....Hawks 23....Steelers...14.....This whole officiating fiasco has been really bad. Ever since that BS Raiders - Patriots AFC championship game I've seen more and more Bad officiating. So I guess congrat's go out to Pittsburgh and it's 12th man.......
So did Holmgren come out to shake hands or not? That's what I want to know.
Yeah he did but I heard he did a Brodie before the hand shake!!!
I think one of the referees accidentally pulled out his "Terrible Towel" on accident thinking it was his flag to throw against the Seahawks. Did all the referees grow up "Steel Curtain" fans? Or are they just that crappy that they couldn't make the game fair? Pass Interference to start the game-JOKE! Ben's touchdown-JOKE! Who is the NFL kidding? They get who they want to win. Maybe Vegas had it right, and they made a killing off what should have been a Seahawk win. Is the Mafia involved? Amazing!! Worst called Superbowl EVER!!!!!!!!!
...the STEELERS won.. deal with it. Good call steelergirl. Peace.
Several more bad calls against the Seahawks...Since when is kicking the pylon out of bounds? And how far downfield can Alan Faneca run on the gadget plays? Maybe they were to busy watching in amazement. Seattle had the fewest penalties during the season; I guess the referees felt slighted. If this is what the Super Bowl is played like, I don't wanna go back.
Even though the officiating was horrible both teams played mistake-filled football. It was pretty close to the worst-played Super Bowl I've ever watched. I agree with most of the comments that the officiating controlled the game to an extent but still, the officials didn't force Hasselback to throw to pretty much nobody (except for half the Steelers DBs) on that pick when it was 14-10. He could've thrown it away and his team would've had a field goal. Anyway, every game has bad calls, but Pittsburgh made two big plays when it counted and won the game. Seattle didn't, period. All that said, I'm glad for Bill Cowher. It's hard to find a classier guy in all of sports and it was nice to see him finally get his team over the top.
I'm glad for the Bus and all but this game should have been alot better if the refs didnt miss so many calls. Roethlisberger's TD should have been called back. You never know that could have changed the whole game around if the would have been stoped and have to settle for the field goal. You have to admit, this game was BORING!!! Not even the half-time show was good. John madden and Al Michaels tried to make it seem more exciting than it really was. Its all gone now so congrats to the Bus and Pittsburg Steelers. But next year, COLTS ALL THE WAY!!!
i'm not one to rip on game officials (bein' one myself), but ... i have to say that i was not impressed with some of those calls. the offensive interference call came WAY too late. in real-time, it did look like the defender told him to throw his flag! even if it woulda came quicker, it was a softy ... a no-call in my opinion. also, if it was my call, roethlisberger's TD was good if the "plane" is the field side of the goal line ... I'd have to refer to the NFL rulebook though. was this one reviewed? the hasselbeck "fumble" that was reviewed was also a good review. in real-time that one woulda stood as a fumble. so, in a nutshell ... while i wasn't overly impressed with the overall quality of the officiating in the game today, it does make me appreciate the pressures and the difficulties of bein' "bang on" in the biggest (XL) game ever.
Bein' a Steelers' fan, I'm glad that Cowher and Bettis won the SB(but not for Ward and Porter). Plus, I get to rub it in the face of my dad and my stepmom and her kids, as they're huge Dallas fans. But I definitely think this wasn't of the best SBs ever. Iffy officiating, so-so commercials, and a bad half time show. But at least Pittsburgh won and we didn't have to see Ward do another one of his horrible lookin' dances after he scored his TD.
Just as Joey Porter said the refs wanted the Colts and Manning to go to the Super Bowl...well Joey, how about this....These Ding Dong Zebras made sure The Bus got what he wanted....ya know what I mean Earl!!! I'm not a Steeler fan....But Congrats to the Steel city. IndycoltsJ
Umm no. Pretty sweet that two Pennsylvania teams went to the big dance twice in a row. Too bad MY Birds couldnt do it last year. Props to the Steel City. Screw(and I know this is beating a dead horse)T.O. How 'bout 'dem Phils?
You all like to bitch when someone is perceived as a ''homer'' here at Spofi but isn't it nice that you can be a ''hater'' all you want as long as you claim it is the refs you are mad at? Bullshit! There where bad calls but the Ben touchdown wasn't one, you couldn't see the end of the football on the replay because it was tucked under his arm. So unless that ball ended at the stitches the rest of the ball had to have broken the plane, thus they couldn't overturn the call on the field. How about the no call on the huge block in the back on Ben on the interception return by the Seahawks, I don't here any of you Steeler haters whining about that?
Seattle had their chances. They controlled most of the first half and came away with three points for it. I don't think the officiating was as bad as people are claiming. The TD push-off was small but right in front of a ref and Roethlisberger's TD call had no conclusive evidence to reverse it. The fourth quarter holding call was bad, but if you're going to hang a team's Super Bowl loss on a holding call, they don't deserve to win. Botched holding calls (and non-calls) happen every week.
The BLACK AND WHITE..oops, i mean Black and Gold win another. Happy for Cowher, thats it!
I'm happy for Cowher, because he's a class guy, Pittsburgh born and bred, etc., but all in all, a forgetable game, rather poor officiating (which is becoming the norm), and sloppy play in general by both teams. Big Ben's interception he threw from the 10 when it looked like the Steelers would waltz in was one of the worst passes I've seen thrown this season. It looked like something a fullback would heave up on an option play.
If Ben didn't get in on the called touched, the ball would have had to be place as close to the goal as possible. I would thinking going for it on 4th would have been the call and I think every team in the NFL can get an inch on any team. There were some questionable calls...and some downright bad calls. (Hasselbeck's penalty at the end of the reception was clearly wrong.) It seemed like most of the calls against the Seahawks came at very damaging moments. I can see how if I was a Seahawk fan, I would be upset. But you know, I'm a Steeler fan and I'm happy that they won...but you know, the game pretty much sucked. The Steelers eeked out a win and they have the trophey but for a fan, that's about all to be happy about. Hasselbeck was probably the best player in the game. A win is a win but it clearly doesn't feel like a victory. So to wrap up: a beautiful snow is falling in Pittsburgh this morning and I won't have to deal with depressed co-workers so for that, I'm happy.
I was one of the first few here to single out the ref problems, but I want to clarify that I don't mean to suggest that the Seahawks would have necessarily won if the reffing had been better - just that I think we were robbed of a game in which each team would have had to get much more in tune in order to win. This game was always going to come down to a battle between Seattle's offensive efficiency and clean execution vs Pittburgh's and Big Ben's (and the Bus') intangibles and ability to pull a big play out of the bag - at least on the offensive side of the ball. I think if Seattle hadn't been jobbed on some of those calls I think Pittsburgh would have come under a lot more pressure to succeed - and that would have made the whole game a lot more interesting. I'm not for a second suggesting that they couldn't have done it - the Steelers have always stepped up when they had to this season. The whole problem in this game is that no one really had to work through their problems, so the overall performances were pretty weak all around.
I'm a lifelong Cowboys fan, but I couldn't help but root for Cowher and the Steelers. They were rewarded for sticking with him for some lean years, and with Roethlisberger and that defense, you have to like their chances to win another in the next 2-3 years.
I can't believe how horrible the officiating was. It seems lately as though the outcome of games is known before the teams even take the field. Every time the Seahawks gained momentum the refs handed it back to the steelers. By the way I like the 49ers so I had no stake in this game. The inteception from Hasselback was thrown after not one but two missed offside penalties. Number 53 was in the back field before the ball was snapped then a bullshit holding call. To add insult to injury Hasselback gets flagged for making the tackle. Are you kidding me?
Was it me, or Was Al and John not fully fired up for the game? Maybe they were thinking too much about the future? It isn't just you, daddi, they did a pretty bad job calling the game. Al said a bunch of things that almost rivaled Harry Carey. "Grey's Anatomy is in the vein of Desperate Housewives, Lost and Grey's Anatomy." OK Al, good job on the ad libbing there.
They had one great exchange amid a lot of pedestrian or clumsy commentary. My paraphrase: Madden: "What kind of injury requires that you take off your pants? I don't think you check a hamstring that way." Michaels: "Even on a five-second delay, I'm not going to venture a guess."
ok, admittedly the officiating wasn't SUPER, but come on guys- we can't say that the refs GAVE the Steelers the game...How many times did the Steelers Defense force a Punt? Were the Refs responsible for ALL those 3rd down stops? Also, for everyone here that says that 'without the phantom holding call, the Seahawks were about to have 1st and goal at the 3 and take the lead', there is a Steelers fan who maintains that without that call, Joey Porter comes into the Steelers goal line defense and forces a Shawn Alexander fumble that Polamalu scoops up and runs 97 yards for a touchdown... I 'd say the Steelers defense kept the Seahawks off balance enough to keep them from scoring the points they needed to win, end of story...
I never said the 'hawks WOULD score from 1 and goal. I simply point out that they have 1 and goal rather than Steeler 1 and 10 att he 40 coming out, incidently, lets not forget that this is also the drive that ended in the Randle El-Ward TD throw (great play, poorly defended) which, if there were any span of 10 minutes that killed Seattle's hope of winning, this was it. Cowher outcoached Holmgren, Hasselbeck outplayed everyone, Stones outlasted there entertainment value, officials out to lunch.
That two-week break is an absolute killer. I had absolutely no enthusiasm for the game when it started, and the game backed me up on that. Last year's Grey Cup put this game to shame, entertainment-wise.
I didn't care one way or the other who won, but thanks to the bad officiating I'm not sure I'll care about the NFL at all next season.
From the NFL's Digest of Rules:
The goal line is actually in the end zone. A player with the ball in his possession scores a touchdown when the ball is on, above, or over the goal line.
It's a TD if the tip of the ball goes over the edge of the goal line that's closest to the field, which is what looked like happened on Roethlisberger's TD.
That was pretty boring to watch so I just put it on the stereo and listened while I played video games. I ended up rooting for the Seahawks because at the start of the game they were showing pictures of Pittsburgh players w/ the trophy. Don't they know thats bad karma. At least Ben was smart enough not to touch it.
Face it, Steelers fans...the ring for the thumb will have black and white stripes on it
At least Ben was smart enough not to touch it. ...With a QB rating of like 29.2, maybe he SHOULD have touched it- let some of that Montana Magic rub off on him... Seriously, it's not the Stanley Cup- they make a new trophy each year, so there isn't that stigma/superstition against touching it...
Pretty much like the Steelers last Super Bowl, Dallas didnt play all that well, but played well at the right times just as the Steelers did yesterday. Glad to see The Bus get his ring.
We complained about the offciating so in comes instant replay (which I have never cared for) so what now? Review every play? I like a well played game, this was not one of those games. I do so love the human drama the officals bring to the game. Like it or not they are not perfect and I wouldnt have it any other way. oh yea....grats to the steelers and their fans. Go Saints
The refs weren't great, but they hardly decided the game. Seattle's inability to: * Kick field goals * Catch passes * Stay inbounds * Manage the clock is what decided the game.
Well, it wasn't the worst Super Bowl I've ever seen, and a good ref is a ref who doesn't get mentioned the next day, which tells their story, but it was a decent game. A bit of back-and-forth, it could have gone either way up until three-four minutes left, the Seahawks made a couple less plays than the Steelers did, and that was the difference. Good on them. Now, Shaun Alexander sounded like he wanted to come back next year and finish some business, which would be great news for the Seahawks. If they can keep this team together, there's no reason they'd not be contenders next year.
So the Steelers win one for the thumb. Congrats to them. They are now tied all-time for most SB wins. However, I would to congrate the Seattle Seahawks for making it. I believe the Seahawks downfall was late in the 2nd quarter when Hassleback took too long to snap the ball. Once again, congrats to Pittsburgh.
Not being a big football fan, it was interesting to watch the game unfold as it did. Anyone saying that the officating(sp) didn't change the moumentum of this game is a fan of the black and gold. Seattle should have scored 14 or 17 additional points in the game, at the very least 10. It's nice to see Rooney get another ring, Cowher and Bettis, but today or very soon they will watch the game films and be very thankful it ended the way it did. Game Over.
Didn't make the plays? They did make the plays but every time they did, it was called back by the idiots! I'm not a fan of either team, but I am a fan of GOOD officiating... I really think they had too much of an effect on the outcome of this game agreed. the Refs were waving their terrible towels enough for everybody also agreed. Now for my comment: I know this in no way affected the out come of the game, but (referring to the call near the end of the game), how do you get called for illegal block or whatever when you (Hasselbeck) are trying to tackle the guy with the ball? How do you block a blocker?
To all of the "cry babies", I wish you some "cheese" to go with your "whine"! Too bad that you can't have the "class" that the Seahawks have and admitt that they just didn't make the plays when they needed to! You are probably still crying about the catch that "Jackie Smith" should have made in the Super Bowl against the Steelers!
Some people: Allright Steeler fans, go ahead - rub it their faces! No, it's not classy or good sportsmanship, but hey, If I had to live in Pittsburgh, I'd take all the one-upmanship I could get. I mean, actually having to live in Pittsburgh? Yeah, you need it. I wouldn't have to remind you if you were going to play nice with the Seahawk fans, but here we are. That said (for the benefit of the assholes), the Seahawks lost this game far more than the refs gave it to the Steelers. Terrible clock management, five or six dropped passes, missed field goal, and pourous defence. Let's not suggest a frigging holding call meant the difference between a parade and the usual trip to Starbucks.
By the way, did anyone notice that Seattle led the NFL in sacks, which means they have a pretty darn good pash rush, and the Steelers did not have 1 holding penalty on their offense? or did anyone else notice the Steelers only threw the ball like 20 times lessening the chance of holding penalties whereas seattle had like 40+ attempts and a couple of holding penalties. That seems about right to me.
Since when is kicking the pylon out of bounds? when the ball and your other foot are out of bounds
I disagree Weedy... if football is a game of inches, and one play can change the momentum of a game or seal a win, then one terrible call, actually, at least 3 terrible calls, can alter the outcome of a game... No, they still might not have won, as a matter of fact, I had the Steelers to win anyway, but at least it would have been a different game, a better game to play, a better game to watch... The players deserve that, the fans deserve it too...
Amen, WEEDYMCSMOKEY, I think steelerfan1970 sould apologize. You don't have to be profane...no class. Yes, as I stated earlier...the 'Hawks didn't make the plays when they NEEDED to...2 missed fieldgoals, how did the refs influence that? Also the intercep.? No, it wasn't a stellar game for either team...but i'm glad Pittsburgh won
As for all the Steelers fans coming in here calling people "cry babies" and whiners and whatnot... Think about a few weeks ago when you had that poor call on the Int against the Colts... even though you won, we had to listen to all of you, including Porter, "whine" and "cry" about that ONE bad call... What if you had lost? You all would have said that it was because of the Refs... I'm not a Seahawks fan, but I respect the fact that they can take responsibilty, be gracious, and be men... That's the role they should take... As for myself and other fans of the game... We can bitch about whatever we want, cuz when you think about it, we pay these guys salaries, including the refs... there wouldn't even be pro sports without fans to support it... So I think we deserve better than to have games shifted by poor officiating... I understand that it's tough to officiate in the NFL, and I can't even imagine how much pressure there is in game, let alone the Super Bowl! But I think they need to re-evaluate their positions and realize that they are there to "manage" the game, not manipulate... keep your stinkin flag in your pocket! It really has gotten out of hand and something needs to be done... All that said... All credit to the Steelers for making plays when they needed to. Kudos to the Seahawks for playing hard and being gracious and maintaining integrity in defeat. And tomatoes to the officials for abusing their power... Time for a referee Pow-wow...
Let's not suggest a frigging holding call meant the difference between a parade and the usual trip to Starbucks. Take away the phantom holding call and you have an almost certain 7 points. Take away the interference call and there's a definite 7 points. That's 14 points and a different winner. Why is it so crazy to not put any importance to that? That's probably what the nfl wants. Now if only seattle had played well, they really would have a case, not that I think the calls should be ignored. For me, that's the beauty of baseball, or the nba. 7 games tends (mostly) to overshadow any umpire/ref mistakes. The superbowl doesn't have that luxury.
I have to agree...snoozefest! Very anti-climactic game! But....way to go STEELERS!!!! And way to end on a high note for the Bus! Even tho he was only in for short yardage-he will be missed by all in the Burgh! Fabulous 75 yard run by Fast Willie! and what a throw by Randell El to Hines Ward-the only 2 highlights of the game! Now we wait to see what next year brings!
Take away the phantom holding call and you have an almost certain 7 points. why? Pittsburgh's defense all year has kept teams out of the endzone and forced FGs. Just this postseason a team had 1st and goal from the 3 and settled for a FG. 7 was in no way guaranteed. Take away the interference call and there's a definite 7 points. That's 14 points You forget they settled for a FG after that call. So That 7 was converted as 3 instead, so a total difference of 4 points difference. So not 14 points, but instead 11 points and at most a tie game.
Now for my comment: I know this in no way affected the out come of the game, but (referring to the call near the end of the game), how do you get called for illegal block or whatever when you (Hasselbeck) are trying to tackle the guy with the ball? How do you block a blocker? Arrmatey, that was probably the worst call of the entire game. You hit it right on the head. Hasselback goes for the tackle and gets called for an illegal block. Who the heck was he blocking for? Just another sign that the officiating in the NFL has gone down to pee-wee football level in terms of quality. Anybody with any sense would realize he was trying to tackle there. Completely unbelievable. This is not to say that I think Seattle got robbed by the officials. On the contrary, Seattle had plenty of chances to make its move. Like I said in my earlier post, the officials didn't force Hasselback to throw the ball to pretty much nobody on that killer interception when it was 14-10 Steelers. I mean, where in the heck was he throwing it? Just a horrible mistake and it cost the Seahawks the game more than any bad call did.
The Steelers won and the officiating was not perfect but it wasn't bad. The push off in the end zone was clearly a push off and illegal. The receiver used the defender to push off and change direction. It was the reason he got separation, the reason the ball was thrown to him, it was illegal and it happened directly in front of the ref. A non call in that situation would have been bad officiating. Rothlisberger's TD was a TD. The plane of the goaline begins at the front of the white stripe. Even the replay showed that the ball kissed that plane before it was pulled back or hit the ground. Even if it did not kiss the plane of the goaline it was so close the call could not be overruled. If it were overruled the odds of a touchdown on the next play with a quarter inch to go are about 99.9999%. The Steelers won ugly, their offense was not as good as usual but their defense did what it always does and kept them in the game. The made the plays when they had to and to their credit did not try to sit on the lead when they had it. The trick play was a gutsy and perfect call. Rothlisberger made a stupid mistake that resulted in allowing Seattle back into the game when the Steelers were about to take total control. The league MVP Sean Alexander was contained and a non factor. To the credit of the Seahawks (not their fans) I haven't heard one of them use officiating as an excuse. Every one of them admitted to being outplayed as the reason for their loss. I am no fan of the Steelers but the best team won. There are always calls, non calls and bounces of the ball that occur in every football game. A winning team must play well enough to not loose on them. 11 points is more margin than any one call can erase. A team that holds the league's highest scoring offense to 10 points deserves victory. That is why they won despite an lack luster offensive day. Defense wins championships every time. Seattle stop whinning. Even if the push off wasn't called, it would have only resulted in 4 additional points. Not enough to change the outcome. Better luck next year.
Now do you know why we don't need another team in the LA area? When the NFL cleans up their act we will reconcider
