Where's a clear picture of the Dez ball touching the ground? Genuine question. The ones I've seen, it probably hit the ground, but there's that word probably
The question of the ball hitting the ground is really irrelevant if you look at what Dez did on that play.
1. He caught and controlled the football (I don't think anybody, Blandino included, disputes that)
2. Got both feet down in bounds (thus establishing possession in the field of play) Nobody disputes that.
3. Made a football move. That completed the entire process and made the point of the football touching the ground completely irrelevant.
Point #3 is what is in dispute, however. Before the 2014 season started, blandino himself came out and stated that there would be a POINT OF EMPHASIS on NOT reversing on-filed calls unless there was INDISPUTABLE VISUAL EVIDENCE to indicate that it should be overturned (there had been a couple of overturned calls the previous season that were controversial...officials overturning calls based on assumptions, IIRC).
Then, along comes the Dez catch in what, to that point, was the biggest game of the NFL season.
Dez caught the ball and took three steps. He also switched the ball from his right hand to his left. Finally, as he was diving for the goal line, he got his left arm partially (not fully) extended to get the ball to break the plane of the goal line.
In all of that, blandino determined that Dez did not make "enough" of a football move, and thus had not completed the act of catching the ball, so possession had to be maintained through contact with the ground.
Hmmm...switching the ball from one hand to the other certainly could be considered to be a football move. Lunging toward the goal line on his THIRD step certainly could be considered a football move.
Partially extending his arm to get the ball over the plane of the goal line could certainly be considered a football move.
But somehow in all of that, dean blandino determined that he had INDISPUTABLE VISUAL EVIDENCE that Dez did not make a football move...or, more accurately, he did not make "enough" of a football move. When blandino used the phrase "not enough of a football move", that implied to any rational person that he felt Dez made at least "some" of a football move. How he could rationalize that "not enough of a football move" was equivalent to "indisputable visual evidence of no football move" is mind boggling.
However, it's not really mind boggling if you consider that blandino got caught on JJ's party bus and then took heat from some for the non PI call in the Detroit game claiming he was "pro Dallas". The Dez reversal was his way of showing that he was "impartial". Complete FAIL on his part.
And as for the claim that "the League" confirmed the Dez call, who the hell in "the League" made that confirmation? It certainly wasn't Goodell (hint: it was confirmed by none other than blandino, himself)...there is no one in "the League" that is above him to make that confirmation (unless there's a "President of Officiating" position that I'm unaware of).
So, blandino wrongly reverses the call made by the official on the field (too bad blandino has ZERO officiating on-field experience) and then boldly "confirms" that he made the correct call. Well, that certainly settles that issue...I mean what sensible person would argue that?
