COMMISH TOOK KEEN INTEREST IN PATS-COLTS OFFICIATING
Jay Glazer of FOX reports that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell had a closed-door one-on-one with NFL director of officiating Mike Pereira to review all of the calls from last weekend's greatest . . . game . . . ever.
The Patriots-Colts contest featured numerous bad calls against New England. Curiously, however, there has been little mention of the horrendous calls in the media. (Some Internet hack who also writes for SportingNews.com mentioned it last Sunday.)
Among other things, Pats receiver Randy Moss was called for offensive pass interference on a play in which he apparently didn't even touch the defender. Also, New England cornerback Ellis Hobbs was flagged for defensive pass interference after he was tackled by Colts wideout Reggie Wayne.
League insiders have attributed the phenomenon to one of three dynamics. First, the zebras simply got the calls wrong. Second, the officials were subconsciously influenced by the reputation of Colts G.M. Bill Polian for going bonkos when calls don't go his team's way. Third, the guys in black and white were subconsciously influenced by all of the criticism of the Pats for cheating and running up the score.If the real explanation is the last one, the Pats might want to be ready for more bad calls moving forward. Their recent actions and decisions are making the Patriots into a team that is perceived by some as "bad guys," and the end result could be a chronic case of some of the same bad calls that teams like the Raiders have seen over the years.
You know, like the tuck rule play, from the game that arguably spawned the Patriots' dynasty.
Still, the point here is that the Commish seems to be intent on keeping factors like that from influencing the outcome of games.
Jay Glazer of FOX reports that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell had a closed-door one-on-one with NFL director of officiating Mike Pereira to review all of the calls from last weekend's greatest . . . game . . . ever.
The Patriots-Colts contest featured numerous bad calls against New England. Curiously, however, there has been little mention of the horrendous calls in the media. (Some Internet hack who also writes for SportingNews.com mentioned it last Sunday.)
Among other things, Pats receiver Randy Moss was called for offensive pass interference on a play in which he apparently didn't even touch the defender. Also, New England cornerback Ellis Hobbs was flagged for defensive pass interference after he was tackled by Colts wideout Reggie Wayne.
League insiders have attributed the phenomenon to one of three dynamics. First, the zebras simply got the calls wrong. Second, the officials were subconsciously influenced by the reputation of Colts G.M. Bill Polian for going bonkos when calls don't go his team's way. Third, the guys in black and white were subconsciously influenced by all of the criticism of the Pats for cheating and running up the score.If the real explanation is the last one, the Pats might want to be ready for more bad calls moving forward. Their recent actions and decisions are making the Patriots into a team that is perceived by some as "bad guys," and the end result could be a chronic case of some of the same bad calls that teams like the Raiders have seen over the years.
You know, like the tuck rule play, from the game that arguably spawned the Patriots' dynasty.
Still, the point here is that the Commish seems to be intent on keeping factors like that from influencing the outcome of games.
