Ed Hochuli responds

[WV Cowboy]

Dude, They made the play. They forced the scramble and the attempted throw on the run. They were in position to recover the ball an end the game. They made THE PLAY to win the game and it was taken away from them. Your logic is.. well... not logical.

You are assuming that we know what would have played out if SD had been awarded the ball as they should have.

Who is to say that perhaps a snap would have been fumbled, (it has happened) or that a RB would have fumbled.(it has happened)

We honestly don't know what would have happened if the ball had been given to SD.

Odds are they would have held on and won, but we can't know that for sure.

But we do know that had they not allowed Denver to score 31 pts already, the late score would not have mattered as much.
Had they not allowed Denver to score from the 10, and had they not then turned around and allow them to successfully run the SAME FLIPPIN' PLAY for the 2 pt conversion they may have won.

They got screwed on that play, but many many other things happened to contribute to them losing the game.

But let's blame the ref, then we don't have to be accountable.

 

[Danny White]

It might be wrong, but if I would have been Ed I would have definitely been looking very hard to find a hold or other penalty against Denver on those last 2 Denver plays, knowing my screw up had taken a win away from SD and the game should have already been decided.

They could have called pass interference on that last hail mary pass. Chambers was bumped.

Normally you'd never call that, but in this case, it might have been justified.

 

[Danny White]

You are assuming that we know what would have played out if SD had been awarded the ball as they should have.

Who is to say that perhaps a snap would have been fumbled, (it has happened) or that a RB would have fumbled.(it has happened)

We honestly don't know what would have happened if the ball had been given to SD.

Can you show me ONE instance where a team (college or pro) has fumbled the ball before going into the kneel down formation?

Just curious, because I've never heard of or seen that happen.

The closest is the "Miracle in the Meadowlands" but they were trying to hand the ball off.

 

[Beast_from_East]

He didn't cost them the game. YES...he made a bad, no horrible call, but he didn't cost them the game. If I'm not mistaken, The Broncos put up 31 points without that call...was that Hoculi's fault? The Chargers still had two chances to stop the Broncos from winning...is that Ed's fault they can't overcome adversity in that situation? The only thing Ed's goof did was give the Broncos a last chance...and it got magnified 1 millions times because of when during the game it happened. If that happened on the first series of the game...yes, it would have given the Broncos...an OPPORTUNITY....to score, but you wouldn't have the outcry currently existing.

If I'm not mistaken, Hoculi was almost directly behind Cutler when he fumbled. From that angle, you can't tell if the ball moved forward or backward. I totally agree he should have let the play continue until finality. Worst case scenario is that it gets overturned. But do you remember what happened to Brady just one week earlier after he threw his pass? QBs drive the game and are the most marketable commodity the league has. Subconsiously, perhaps Ed had that in the back of his mind with all the pub that the Brady injury got. Cutler has elevated himself into the top tier of QBs in the league and if he were to have gotten hurt on the play if he allowed it to go, it could have ruined Denver's season.

The man can't win...but he's still only human, no matter how big his biceps are. It happens, it happened, it was a wrong call, but blame the league for the current rules in place, not Ed for not being able to correct the mistake. He admitted his mistake...what more can he do? It's a shame more people can't admit it when they are wrong in their daily lives, not to mention when your error is on national TV and affects hundreds of other individuals.

I really dont care what Ed says or what the NFL says or what anybody says about that call. The fact of the matter is that officiating determined the outcome of the game, that is the worst thing in the world for the NFL, especially after NBA refs were busted for betting on games they officiated.

All the apologiezes in the world mean JACK right now. Denver got the W and the Chargers get the L, that is the bottom line and everything else means JACK.

 

[jobberone]

I read that on Yahoo and sent him an e-mail of support.

That doesn't surprise me at all. I sent one earlier today and said a prayer. One call should not define his legacy.

 

[adamknite]

You are assuming that we know what would have played out if SD had been awarded the ball as they should have.

Who is to say that perhaps a snap would have been fumbled, (it has happened) or that a RB would have fumbled.(it has happened)

We honestly don't know what would have happened if the ball had been given to SD.

Odds are they would have held on and won, but we can't know that for sure.

But we do know that had they not allowed Denver to score 31 pts already, the late score would not have mattered as much.
Had they not allowed Denver to score from the 10, and had they not then turned around and allow them to successfully run the SAME FLIPPIN' PLAY for the 2 pt conversion they may have won.

They got screwed on that play, but many many other things happened to contribute to them losing the game.

But let's blame the ref, then we don't have to be accountable.

If the Chargers got that fumble, and then fumbled the ball back to the Broncos on their possession trying to run out the clock, that would mean the players on the field decided the outcome, it would be the Chargers who fumbled that ball and they couldn't point to anywhere else but themselves. The referees would have had nothing to do with the outcome.

The fact of the matter is that the referees gave Denver a do-over, because of some rule even though they admitted it was fumble they couldn't give SD the ball.

No matter what the Chargers had done before that point, no matter that they allowed Denver to score 31 points... it was the referee's whistle that took the game out of their hands, and gave Denver another shot even though it was Denver who had fumbled their chance at winning the game on that play.

 

[WV Cowboy]

Can you show me ONE instance where a team (college or pro) has fumbled the ball before going into the kneel down formation?

Just curious, because I've never heard of or seen that happen.

The closest is the "Miracle in the Meadowlands" but they were trying to hand the ball off.

Surely you have been watching sports long enough to know dang near anything can happen.

You don't see an NFL QB, untouched, drop the ball in his own EZ, pick it up, .. and drop it again very often, but it could happen.

Blaming officials, and thereby exonerating your own self of any blame is a dangerous and slippery slide to start down.

But it seems many are anxious to do just that, ... have at it.

 

[WV Cowboy]

The fact of the matter is that the referees gave Denver a do-over, because of some rule even though they admitted it was fumble they couldn't give SD the ball.

No matter what the Chargers had done before that point, no matter that they allowed Denver to score 31 points... it was the referee's whistle that took the game out of their hands, and gave Denver another shot even though it was Denver who had fumbled their chance at winning the game on that play.

How about not letting Denver score 8 pts after the blown call?

If this would have occurred in the 1st quarter, would we still be having this discussion?

 

[Beast_from_East]

Now is the time to get browny points for future Hochuli reffed Cowboy's games.

Are you serious?

You do realize that we lose almost every game that Hochuli's crew has officiated, in fact I cant remember the last time we actually won a game that Hochuli officiated, he calls almost everything on Dallas and he calls JACK on the other team.

Why do you think Jerry was busting his balls this week about how the owners consider him to be one of the worst refs in the league. Could it be the fact that we get screwed by Hochuli every freaking time he works a Cowboys game?

 

[TNCowboy]

I really dont care what Ed says or what the NFL says or what anybody says about that call. The fact of the matter is that officiating determined the outcome of the game, that is the worst thing in the world for the NFL, especially after NBA refs were busted for betting on games they officiated.

All the apologiezes in the world mean JACK right now. Denver got the W and the Chargers get the L, that is the bottom line and everything else means JACK.

All the calls to that point were good, or even? If calls went against Denver earlier in the game, they really have just as much meaning. We just assign more weight to a missed call in the final minute.

Monday night's game was horribly officiated, but it gets far less scrutiny since there were no controversial calls in the final few minutes.

The bottom line is that there are going to be mistakes, always. No amount of replay and scrutiny will change that. The only way to make sure a bad call doesn't bite you is to make sure you're not in close games.

 

[jobberone]

Are you serious?

You do realize that we lose almost every game that Hochuli's crew has officiated, in fact I cant remember the last time we actually won a game that Hochuli officiated, he calls almost everything on Dallas and he calls JACK on the other team.

Why do you think Jerry was busting his balls this week about how the owners consider him to be one of the worst refs in the league. Could it be the fact that we get screwed by Hochuli every freaking time he works a Cowboys game?

Do you have a link or reference for the fact we always lose when Hochuli is the referee?

 

[adamknite]

How about not letting Denver score 8 pts after the blown call?

How about Denver fumbling the ball inside the redzone in the final moments of the game, costing them the win and not even giving them a another crack at the endzone? Oh wait..... because of a premature whistle... that fumble was basically meaningless for them.

If this would have occurred in the 1st quarter, would we still be having this discussion?

Not even close to the same situation.

If the Chargers would have gotten the fumble at the end of the game they would have been kneeling the ball and playing it safe, low risk plays to run out the clock never giving Denver the ball back.

I highly doubt, if the Chargers don't get that fumble in the 1st quarter, that they could complain "We could have stopped them from ever getting the ball", however with less than a minute left, they could say that.

In the first quarter it would have just been a terrible call, in the final minute of play, it becomes a game changing call.

 

[Beast_from_East]

What would they do the other 6 1/2 days a week. They already know the rules, they just sometimes make a bad call. My problem is with the NFL. They have complicated too many simple things. Get rid of instant replay and just rely on the 7 guys on the field to make the calls. Instant replay hasn't eliminated the mistakes and just delays the game. I call it "lawyer" ball.

If we get rid of instant replay, like you are suggesting, then what happens if a playoff game is decided like the Chargers-Panthers game and a WR catches the ball in the back of the end zone with no time left, refs rule it a TD and give Panthers a W.

Then the networks show a replay and the WR only got 1 foot down and the other foot cleary is out of bounds. With no replay, the call on the field stands and the Panthers win a playoff game that they should have lost.

Thus, the replay is then shown about 1000 times on network and cable and you have officiating determining the outcome of a playoff game. That would really be good PR, wouldnt it.

 

[Beast_from_East]

What would you say if on Monday night's game, they decided to give the Eagles one more snap after we held them on 4th down?

Sure, the game was over and they turned the ball over on downs, but let's say the refs decided to give them one more shot?

If they scored on that extra down, would you say, "hey it's our fault for letting the score be so close there at the end."

No one in their right mind would say that. We would (rightly) say that "we had the game won and the refs gave it to them."

That is EXACTLY what happened here.

 

[WV Cowboy]

How about Denver fumbling the ball inside the redzone in the final moments of the game, costing them the win and not even giving them a another crack at the endzone? Oh wait..... because of a premature whistle... that fumble was basically meaningless for them.



Not even close to the same situation.

If the Chargers would have gotten the fumble at the end of the game they would have been kneeling the ball and playing it safe, low risk plays to run out the clock never giving Denver the ball back.

I highly doubt, if the Chargers don't get that fumble in the 1st quarter, that they could complain "We could have stopped them from ever getting the ball", however with less than a minute left, they could say that.

In the first quarter it would have just been a terrible call, in the final minute of play, it becomes a game changing call.

Thank you, you made my point.

 

[Beast_from_East]

It's great to always have someone else to blame when you don't do enough to win.

Because if it is someone or something else's fault, then it is not your fault.

"The sun was in my eyes, the grass was too wet, the ball was slick, my shoe was untied, it was too muddy."

Because if the Chargers can blame the ref, then they don't have to own up to the fact that it was them that allowed the Broncos to score 31 pts. prior to the bad call. They don't have to own up to the fact that they let the Broncos score from the 10, they don't have to own up to the fact that they allowed the Broncos to get a 2 pt conversion.

It's not the Chargers fault, it's the refs.

There, doesn't that feel better.

I have a feeling that if Dallas is flat-out raped in Green Bay Sunday night by the refs, you are not going to be so forgiving.

Just a hunch.

 

[adamknite]

Thank you, you made my point.

No.... the call didn't happen in the 1st quarter, so your point is completely invalid.

The call did happen in the final moments of a close game, therefore it had a great deal to do with the outcome of the game. Which wasn't the point you were arguing at all.

 

[Don Corleone]

I bet those sending him hate mail aren't man enough to take him on one on one, or to express those feelings to him in person. It is easy to be critical behind a keyboard and screen. He can probably beat the snot out of all of them.

 

[Beast_from_East]

How about not letting Denver score 8 pts after the blown call?

If this would have occurred in the 1st quarter, would we still be having this discussion?

How bout blowing the whistle when the Charger WR as laying on the ground and Champ Bailey rips the ball out of his hands. Anybody with a 2nd grade education could see that he was down by contact.

So that is 2 big-time screw ups that directly affected the outcome of the game.

 

[Danny White]

Surely you have been watching sports long enough to know dang near anything can happen.

Certainly, anything is possible.

Lightning could strike Jay Cutler while he's going back to pass.

Very small likelihood of that happening, though... just as there's a very small likelihood of Rivers fumbling the snap on the "victory" formation. I've watched a lot of football in my life and I've never seen either happen.

You, however, seemed to indicate you have seen it happen before. I'm curious when you've seen a fumble on a "victory" formation.