The Roar
The Roar

American Football
Advertisement

Catch or no catch, Rodgers put his best foot forward to advance the Packers
Simon Smale
Roar Guru
12th January, 2015
10
Join the conversation
Advertisement
Write for The Roar

Anyone can contribute to The Roar and have their work featured alongside some of Australia’s most prominent sports journalists.

(AP Photo/Matt Ludtke)
Simon Smale
Roar Guru
12th January, 2015
10

Officiating at the very top level of any sport must be incredibly tough.

No matter how good you are, sometimes you will have to make a judgement calls, and whether it’s the correct or incorrect decision as per the rules, you are always going to upset some people.

Nowhere was this more evident than in Sunday’s fiercely fought divisional playoff between the Dallas Cowboys and the Green Bay Packers.

Deep in the fourth quarter, the score 26-21 to the Packers, with the Cowboys 4 and 2, Tony Romo looked deep to his favourite receiver, Dez Bryant, down the left touchline. Bryant leaped, and looked to have pulled off a miraculous catch to put the Cowboys within touching distance of the go ahead score. But then came the decision that got everyone talking.

Packers head coach Mike McCarthy threw the challenge flag, and Cowboy fans wept as the on-field decision was overturned by referee Gene Seratore, who ruled an incomplete pass, turning over the ball to the Packers on downs.

In the post-match interview, Bryant cut a dejected figure. Hounded by microphones and cameras, he attempted to answer impossible questions from America’s press, but one thing he did say was that he would be devastated if he reads or hears all next week that the catch should have been called legal.

Other players and fans also voiced their displeasure at the call, and requested clarification on the rule, including NBA star LeBron James and fellow NFL wide receiver Odell Beckham Junior.

Advertisement

On that front, neither they or Bryant should look any further than the Vice President of Officiating for the NFL, Dean Blandino.

The rule is actually quite clear, and as upset as it makes players, coaches and fans across the league, it has been applied fairly consistently for five years – ever since the controversial ruling out of a Calvin Johnson touchdown for Detroit against Chicago.

In that situation, wide receiver Johnson touched the ball into the ground immediately after he had control when making a crucial catch in the end zone, and as such the ball was grounded during the act of going to ground and therefore ruled incomplete. Detroit were quick to remind everyone of this via their Twitter feed.

Advertisement

Blandino tweeted instantly that Bryant would have to hold onto the ball throughout the entire process of contacting the ground, and ruled that as he hadn’t done this, so it was an incomplete pass.

Whether or not the rule is a good one is a different argument all together.

Coach-turned-pundit Tony Dungy and former great Deion Sanders both queried the rule as opposed to the call, and Sanders went as far to say that the rule will be changed in the offseason.

Advertisement

But for the Cowboys, whom it must be remembered benefited from a hugely controversial call last week to beat the Detroit Lions, any rule change will come too late.

The Packers in the meantime can look forward to a huge match-up in Seattle against the Seahawks, and throughout the coming week, all eyes will be on quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Advertisement

Prior to the game, Hall of Famer and former Dallas quarterback Troy Aikman stated that he would take Tony Romo over any quarterback in the country at the moment. While I am loath to question his judgement, I’ll happily make do with Aaron Rodgers myself.

In leading his team to the win yesterday, Rodgers displayed once more why he is the top quarterback in the NFL. With his calf clearly troubling him, he produced a near flawless second-half performance to reinforce his MVP credentials, throwing 24/35 for 316 yards and 3 touchdowns.

His pinpoint bullet to tight end Richard Rodgers for the go ahead score was as good a pass as you’ll ever see, and was just one of many darts that he threw to receivers who looked to be well covered.

At Lambeau Field this year Rodgers has lead his team to a 9-0 record and an astonishing 28 touchdowns without a single interception. However you look at it, this is a staggering record.

But next week will be a much sterner test for the Packers. Despite finishing with an equal record to Seattle (12-4), the Pack will have to leave their frozen fortress behind them and head west to the number 1 seed Seahawks. There, Rodgers, the most effective long-range passer in the league, will go head-to-head with arguably the best cornerback in the league, Richard Sherman.

Sherman taunted Rodgers after their week 1 match-up – which the reigning Super Bowl Champions won 36-16 – claiming the Packers’ number 12 was too scared to throw to him. Sherman even played on special teams at the end of that game as Rodgers stayed away from the all-conquering cornerback. However, the Packers are a much different team to their September incarnation, and next week – providing Rodgers stays healthy – will be a different story.

But Sherman is in great form as well. After securing an interception while defeating Carolina this weekend, Sherman was quoted as saying that he’d heard that “he [Cam Newton] was going to try me. He didn’t care which side he threw it to. You gotta make people pay for those bad decisions”.

Advertisement

Rodgers will also undoubtedly be made to pay for any bad decisions he makes next weekend. The question is whether the star quarterback will make any.

10
Join the conversation

Hey, supercoach?  Choose your own ultimate NFL team and compete with other players for cash prizes in daily competitions on any match.  If you’re after the best odds on the NFL, PlayUp is your best bet.  Chances are you’re about to lose.  Set a deposit limit.

Related Posts

close