Okay, I know all of you Seattle fans are upset. I know that you feel like you were robbed. I know it’s tough to take defeat. I understand that. robbed. I know it’s tough to take defeat. I understand that. Trust me, I do. But can you really blame the refs for everything?
Sunday was probably one of the most boring Super Bowls I’ve watched since the second Patriots (I don’t think I watched the third) victory. I really didn’t care who won. I like Cowher. I think the Steelers management have been awesome in sticking with one coach for so long, despite losing seasons. I think it’s committment that the rest of the league could use more of. I like Bettis. I think he’s worked hard most of his career and it’s very cool he got to go out on top. I like Holmgreen. I think he’s a good coach whose programs have produced many other good coaches. I like Josh Brown b/c he’s an Oklahoma native.
Other than that, I don’t care.
Yes, there were bad calls, especially the 15-yarder against Hassleback for an illegal block (which was actually a tackle AFTER HE THREW AN INT). Some were judgement calls - the holds, the pass interferences. ESPN.com points out 4 calls that were questionable. I’ll address those four:
- The offensive interference call in the 1st quarter - Darrell Jackson and Chris Hope made contact in the end zone. Jackson caught the pass, which would have given Seatlle a 6-0 lead.
Okay - both players made contact. The call could’ve gone either way. From the replay, I can see how the ref saw Jackson push off. As he seperated, his right arm stayed out as if sheilding himself from Hope. In live action, that’s a tough one, and although ESPN says that sometimes the call isn’t made, it’s still against the rules. Even though it was close and maybe ticky-tack, it was still the right call.
- Roethlisberger’s bootleg diving TD late in the first half.
I actually thought Rothlis… Roethless… BEN didn’t make it in. In fact, I thought it was bad of the refs to raise one arm, saying he was down, then, clearly after Ben had been down and THEN moved the ball into the end zone, the ref’s other arm came up. Really really bad. However, once it goes to replay, there has to be conclusive visual evidence to overturn the call. Honestly, I don’t think there was enough evidence, and obviously, the refs didn’t either.
- A holding call on Sean Locklear in the 4th, erasing an 18-yard completion to the Pittsburgh 1 (Assuming the Hawks score, the Hawks would take the lead 17-14).
I actually don’t know on this call. The pass was from Hasselback to Jerramy Stevens (who had gaurenteed a win). Stevens caught three balls the whole game. He actually dropped more than that. Can you really be upset about this call when your reciever drops more passes than he catches. I think if Stevens had done his job the entire game, this call would be irrelevant.
- Hassleback’s 15-yarder for a block below the waist.
Clearly a bad call. Clearly the wrong call. But the guy had just thrown an INT. Whether or not the Steelers get the 15 extra yards is inconsequential. Yes, you can argue that the Hawks MAY have stopped them, but you can be sure. And from how they scored, Hines Ward probably could’ve run back 15 yards and then run forward the rest of the way and still scored.
I feel bad for the Hawks and their fans. I really do. But you can’t blame this loss on the refs. First of all, they are human—they are going to make mistakes. I think they messed up at least two of the four times on the initial calls listed above. Second, the Super Bowl shouldn’t come down to those calls. Your MVP had only 95 yards with a 4.8 avg. That’s pretty good, but compare that to Parker for Pittsburgh (93 yards with a 9.3 avg). I just don’t think they performed well enough. Third, I realize the fans are hurt, but there are more important things going on in the world. Thousands of Muslims are rioting all over Europe and Asia because of some cartoon from Denmark portraying Muhammad with a bomb as a turbin. Coretta Scott King died and thousands of people have shown up to file past her casket. The new U.S. budget is out.
As fans, you have the right to be upset, but it’s just a game. It’s time to move on. You can come up with all the people (John Madden, Steve Young, Michael Irvin, all the sports writers) you want to say that the game was unfair. Fine, but the game’s over and scoreboard still reads 21-10. And at least one guy agrees with me.
