-This trend that started a few years ago of calling a timeout fractions of a second before the snap on a FG attempt has got to be stopped. It's bush league, and ruins the integrity of the game. The fix is easy - no timeouts permitted within the last :08 of the playclock on FG attempts.
-When people bitch about the ungodly amount of roughing the passer calls, I usually defend the league, because I see where they are coming from when it comes to protecting the QB's. It's a star driven business, and the stars are the QB's (and the head coaches to some extent), so they must be protected. While oftentimes somewhat cheap, I have very little issue with the automatic penalties for contact to the QB's helmet, either helmet-to-helmet, or hand/arm to helmet.
But what drives me nuts, is the ticky tack calls when the QB gets shoved a split second after releasing the ball, of the classic "driving the QB into the ground" call, where the defenders momentum is already established, and in some cases probably doesnt even know the ball has been released.
Look, i'm not advocating bringing back the 1970's and allowing these guys to maul each other on the field. But the league really needs to allow the refs to use judgement on some of these roughing calls. If there is no malice intended, there should be no flag. There would still be some bad calls, but it would eliminate awful calls like we had yesterday...like where the Rams Fred Robbins lightly shoved Bruce Gradkowski on the back, and Gradkowski flopped like he got shot in the back with a shotgun. Or the call in OT on the Redskins, where the DT's momentum took him towrds the downed Matt Schaub, and despite trying to pull up and avoid hard contact, grazed Schaubs' shoulder pad with his helmet. Neither instance was intended malice, and they were cheap, game changing penalties. Maybe even a 5-yard, non-personal foul late hit can be added.
It's gotten to the point that when there is a sack or hit on the QB, I instinctively look up at the screen to see if the yellow flag pops up.
-When people bitch about the ungodly amount of roughing the passer calls, I usually defend the league, because I see where they are coming from when it comes to protecting the QB's. It's a star driven business, and the stars are the QB's (and the head coaches to some extent), so they must be protected. While oftentimes somewhat cheap, I have very little issue with the automatic penalties for contact to the QB's helmet, either helmet-to-helmet, or hand/arm to helmet.
But what drives me nuts, is the ticky tack calls when the QB gets shoved a split second after releasing the ball, of the classic "driving the QB into the ground" call, where the defenders momentum is already established, and in some cases probably doesnt even know the ball has been released.
Look, i'm not advocating bringing back the 1970's and allowing these guys to maul each other on the field. But the league really needs to allow the refs to use judgement on some of these roughing calls. If there is no malice intended, there should be no flag. There would still be some bad calls, but it would eliminate awful calls like we had yesterday...like where the Rams Fred Robbins lightly shoved Bruce Gradkowski on the back, and Gradkowski flopped like he got shot in the back with a shotgun. Or the call in OT on the Redskins, where the DT's momentum took him towrds the downed Matt Schaub, and despite trying to pull up and avoid hard contact, grazed Schaubs' shoulder pad with his helmet. Neither instance was intended malice, and they were cheap, game changing penalties. Maybe even a 5-yard, non-personal foul late hit can be added.
It's gotten to the point that when there is a sack or hit on the QB, I instinctively look up at the screen to see if the yellow flag pops up.
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