Controversy In Green Bay

As most viewers are aware, the replacement officials made an interesting call in the final play of the Monday night contest between the Packers and Seahawks.  Many people are in outrage and calling for the refs throats, as what appeared to be an interception by Green Bay was called a touchdown, giving Seattle the victory.  In fact, the NFL announced the following morning that the refs had made a mistake.  Here is my take, and to the surprise of many, I am going to back up the refs here.

Though initially the Packer DB caught the ball, the receiver did have a hand around it, and two when the players hit the ground. The Seattle receiver, Golden Tate, clearly brought the ball close to his chest as the two were fighting for possession while in the air.  By rule, if possession is shared, even if its not 50-50, the offense gets the ball. It may be a crappy rule, but the refs had to stick to it. Especially as replacements, they stuck to the book rather than making a completely judgmental call, which is the best they could have done in the given situation.  The loss is on the Packers though, had the DB just batted the ball down they would have been out of there with a W. May it be noted, the replacement refs are abysmal and changing the outcome of games, but they will get crap for this they don't deserve.

The good news from this is that because of all the publicity, the NFL refs which are now very much coveted by the fans should be making a return sooner than later. But, none the less, I think they made the right call on the field.