Sunday night’s instant classic between the Rams and Broncos had a back-to-the-future moment, when the teams coached by Sean McVay and Sean Payton were involved in a potential pass interference situation with the game on the line.
The controversial 2018 NFC Championship non-call between the Rams and Saints happened just outside the Los Angeles five yard line. The controversial Sunday evening call took place at practically in the same place on the ground.
There are different opinions about the play. Some saw this as interference. Some didn’t.
Personally, I saw interference. Rams defensive back Josh Wallace used his right hand to push Broncos receiver Pat Bryant just before the ball arrived.
And the operational rule, which lists seven different prohibited acts by the defender when the ball is in the air, begins with this: “Contact by a player who is not playing the ball which restricts the opponent’s ability to make the catch.” »
If the ball comes and the defender pushes it away, common sense says that this is contact that restricts the opponent’s ability to catch the ball.
The only question is whether Wallace was “playing the ball.” While on one hand he hoped to make the interception (and he did), the left hand push was not part of the effort to catch. This was part of efforts to ensure that the intended recipient could not do so.
Chances are, this is a technique Wallace learned, at some point when he was a defensive back. A subtle and timely push may not be seen by an official who is trying to understand everything that is happening.
Bryant, for his part, collapsed after being pushed. The reaction at the SGA level, although caricatured, does not change the fact that Bryant was pushed around.
After the ridiculous non-appeal of 2018, which sparked a Boycott of New Orleans During Super Bowl LIII, the NFL decided to subject pass interference calls and non-calls to replay review. The good idea was executed very poorly and only lasted a year.
Interference, or lack thereof, is a matter of judgment. Some might look at this play and see interference; others might look at the same room and come to the opposite conclusion.
This is one of the biggest problems for former civil servants who take broadcasting jobs and periodically pontificate with the benefit of a frame-by-frame 4K monitor. The question is not whether the former official (some of whom are former officials for a reason) subjectively believes pass interference occurred. The question is whether the current official, who was required to make calls in real time and with the naked eye, did not abuse his broad discretion.
One of the biggest problems with TV referees is that they focus solely on their own interpretation of what they saw. In many cases, who cares? We all see the same thing. In those moments, those who do the job best remind us of the standard that applies to the decision that was made.
For the Broncos-Rams game, the best explanation would have been this: “I probably wouldn’t have thrown a flag if I was in that position, but there are enough to warrant someone else making a different decision.”
Gn sports
