News: DMN: NFL VP officiating Dean Blandino on whether Dez caught the ball, running into Cowboys

[DFWJC]

They had a Dez Bryant career highlight special on TV last night. Of course it was amazing.

But towards the end they had that Green Bay game. Lots of players were micked up. Seemed like all of the Packers' players thought it was clearly a catch, but they thought the debate was whether or not he scored or was down on the one.

That play was kind of the straw that broke the camel's back for me. It had been building over time on how silly it can be to invest yourself into things you have no control over. I'm still obviously a very big sports fan (or I wouldn't spend valuable time on a silly site like this ) but it is permanently less so now than it once was.

 

[Everson24]

If it was ruled a catch would it even be a subject of debate two years later? The fact that it is still a controversial call two years later says something. And if it is a subjective call as he called it how can it be overturned if originally called a catch?

And I love how they cited the "Calvin Johnson Rule" to try to justify it after the game. Did everyone so quickly forget that after the Calvin Johnson play against the Bears happened, that the NFL officials were routinely criticized for misapplying a rule? After the Calvin Johnson play everyone including former officials admitted that it was a bad call and now they use it to convince themselves that they were right in the Dez play? What a bunch of dirty idiots.

 

[DFWJC]

If it was ruled a catch would it even be a subject of debate two years later? The fact that it is still a controversial call two years later says something. And if it is a subjective call as he called it how can it be overturned if originally called a catch?

The fact that even Green Bay thought it was a catch should answer that for you.
The only debate in their eyes was whether or not Dez scored or not.

 

[T-RO]

You can never find enough dead horses to beat.

There are five stages of decay. I support beating that particular dead horse through all five stages:

-Initial Decay
-Putrefaction
-Black Putrefaction
-Butyric Fermentation
-Dry Decay

Beat that thang!

 

[Titleist]

Two years after #DezCaughtIt, the Cowboys and Packers rematch in the NFC divisional game Sunday.
Much has changed since then, from Dak Prescott replacing Tony Romo as Cowboys quarterback to Aaron Rodgers going into and coming out of a slump all in one season to Ezekiel Elliott leading the NFL in rushing this season.

But something that hasn't changed: the NFL's ambiguity on what, exactly, is a catch. Dean Blandino, the NFL's senior VP of officiating, tried to explain.

"We've been through this before," Blandino told ESPN's Mike and Mike Show on Wednesday. "At the Super Bowl last year, actually, we had a run-through through different catches. ... It's control plus two feet plus time. If you don't have those things before you go to the ground, then you got to hold on to it when you land. That's it - that's the controversy in a nutshell."

And yet, the controversies continue. Bryant's catch continued to come into conversation in 2015 Cowboys-Packers talk and earlier this season when Dallas went to Lambeau in October. Cowboys GM/owner Jerry Jones said in October that the 2014 decision "knocked the credibility out from under the way we judge what's a catch and what's not."

"Since that play, I don't believe they've been able to say it in a way that any of us understands yet," he told 105.3 The Fan's Shan & RJ show.

Bryant couldn't play in the 30-16 win, but the catch still came up.

The stage only elevates with a playoff rematch. Blandino said it's not the only uncertainty he encounters.

"Any time you have something that has a lot of subjectivity [people question calls]. Offensive holding, for one, is such a subjective call, and there are a lot of different factors so I think that's one. Pass interference, I think that's one. Downfield contact - who's initiating the contact? Does it create an unfair advantage?"

Blandino said all he and his team can do is "be as consistent as possible with the application of the rules." They strive to do that, with lengthy pregame preparation to ensure both their offsite Game Day Central studio and game replay booths are fully equipped.

"Any time there's a close play, we start looking at it in Game Day Central in conjunction with what the replay booth's doing and then when there's a challenge, we can communicate," he said.

But sometimes, fan bases don't care. Blandino once encountered Cowboys fans who recognized him at the airport.

"I didn't think they were going to let me on the plane," he said. "They were like 'Hey, wait a minute. You're that guy."

But overall, aside from "good-natured ribbing on Twitter," Blandino gets positive feedback in fan interactions.

What does Jason Garrett think of the Dez no-catch?

"We're focused on today's practice," he told reporters Wednesday morning. "2017."

Continue reading...

Why bring up this subject again? It's over, give it a rest.

 

[TNCowboy]

Some on here swear it did. I've seen the replays as closely as I could. I can't tell for sure. The ball moved, but was that from the momentum from his hand hitting?
I'm pretty sure the ball hit. Not positive.

I've looked at it many times, and I think it may have. But I've seen nothing that would rise to the level of "incontrovertible visual evidence".

It was a bad call, and the NFL should have admitted as such instead of trying to excuse it.

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

You can never find enough dead horses to beat.

Or stupid NFL VP's of Officiating.

;-)

 

[4lifecowboy]

The worst part is they robbed fans of the late quarter dramatics we hope to see in the playoffs. Should have been a highlight in a future NFL documentary. Even Green Bay had enough time to counter that touchdown with their own heroics. And they wonder why ratings are dropping.

 

[big dog cowboy]

Why is this still being talked about?

Because the Cowboys got screwed.

 

[SultanOfSix]

All I hear is "I'm a stubborn idiot" when he perpetually tries to rationalize this egregious call.

 

[SDCowboy]

Because the Cowboys got screwed.

Ok, but it's done and over with. Why still care about it?

 

[AmishCowboy]

Ok, but it's done and over with. Why still care about it?

It's a sad part of our history, that's why

 

[Robbieac]

Ok, but it's done and over with. Why still care about it?

Why talk about anything in the past then?

 

[sbark]

The real point is......when NFL's instant replay was set up: the premise was the Ref on the feild at the spot opinion had priority--unless overwhelming evidence showed otherwise on a replay. The NFL totally forgot that thought on that play...in fact opinion via phone to NFL in NYC took over. Instant Cred meltdown.

 

[SDCowboy]

Why talk about anything in the past then?

My point is, it's been covered to death. Dwelling on it doesn't change the outcome. It accomplishes nothing.

 

[CowboysRule]

My point is, it's been covered to death. Dwelling on it doesn't change the outcome. It accomplishes nothing.

So don't read the thread. There are a lot of things that get talked about a lot, past, present, and future. It's a message board. It's for discussion.

 

[big dog cowboy]

Ok, but it's done and over with. Why still care about it?

I'm not over Jackie Smith dropping the ball. Or the bogus PI call on Benny Barnes. It's not some meaning less regular season game. This is playoffs. History changing events.

 

[Yakuza Rich]

They should have asked him to define "time."

Dez had control and took three steps (not just two feet down), and some "time" obviously passed. If there is a minimum amount of time that has to pass no matter how many steps the receiver takes, then it should be stated.

I agree. It HAS to be stated when the rule says that once the player advances the football it is deemed a catch.

The rule was not ambiguous and pretty clear cut.

I have always thought this boiled down to the league thinking that the Calvin Johnson rule applied, but didn't know the actual rule because in Calvin Johnson's case, he was in the end zone and thus could not advance the football.

And instead of just admitting that they didn't know the rule, they have tried to cover it up and thus changed the rule and now Blandino is adding 'time' to his spin job.




YR

 

[Yakuza Rich]

Than you. We know he can't say an amount of time.
I wish one person could ask this idiot Dean the right questions.

I agree. Apparentlty, it would take competence and somebody that could put their disdain for the Cowboys aside to do so. It would also take somebody that is willing to put Blandino's feet to the fire because he would just come up with a new excuse that never existed in the rule book.





YR

 

[LandryFan]

Everytime he tries to explain the play, he bamboozles himself into another corner.

He knows that was a catch. He knows they screwed up. But they cannot admit it. So he is forced to keep defending the indefensible.

"They" didn't screw up...HE did. "They" just went along with what HE decided. His defense of his call at the time was that Dez completed all elements of the catch other than he didn't make "enough" of a football move (or "move common to the game"). In order to overturn the call, he was supposed to have indisputable visual evidence to do so. By him simply stating that in his opinion there wasn't "enough" of a football move, that, to me, clearly proves that there wan't indisputable visual evidence. It's a judgment call at that point. Neither he, nor anyone else, can deny that Dez reached for the endzone with the ball. He just didn't get his arm fully extended before hitting the turf. Since the official on the field called the pass complete, blandino should not have overturned the call. He simply did not have the indisputable visual proof to do so, no matter how many times he says it was incomplete. Had the on-field official ruled incomplete, he wouldn't have had indisputable visual evidence to rule it a catch, either, IMO. The call on the field should have stood. Period. That call, more than any other in Cowboys history, does and will always grate on me more than any other (even the Benny Barnes PI call against Lynn Swann in the SB).