Zebra
Somewhere in, NJ
Male, 62
I've officiated football for over 30 years, now in my 26th on the college level. I've worked NCAA playoffs at the Division II and III level. In addition, I've coached at the scholastic level and have been an educator for over 35 years. I have no interest whatsoever in being an NFL official! Ever!
If a pass does not cross the line of scrimmage (screen) then a) you can't have ineligibles down field and b) you can't have pass interference (offense or defense). In the NFL, they are tighter with lineman, only giving them a yard downfield to block on passes behind the LOS. So, yes, receivers downfield can block before the pass is thrown as long as the pass was caught behind the LOS.
Good question. Are you an Ohio State or Michigan fan? The philosophy officials often use is "advantage/disadvantage". Did the action have a material impact on the play? Having an arm around a receiver isn't automatically a foul. Did the arm actually hook or grab the receiver and turn him away from the ball, or prevent him from reaching for the ball? Or was the arm being there just a good play, timed right? The rules today at virtually all levels - but especially the NFL - favor offense. So I return to the earlier point: Did the action have a material impact on the play? If yes, then we have a foul. And that's why those deep officials get the big bucks - for their judgment on that play.
I always said that if you could penalize for stupidity, there would be no game - it would take too long for all the penalty enforcements.
It was a personal foul - maybe unsportsmanlike? - but still just 15 yards. Could you call it flagrant and DQ the guy? Maybe, but would they? And especially at that point in the game? You could have called it all the things you said, although "targeting" has a specific definition that may not apply here. Regardless, you can't get blood from a stone, so PF is pretty much it.
Couple of things here. If the clock was running and the foul for illegal motion stopped the clock, then there could have been a 10 second runoff and the game would be over. If the click wasn't running, then yes you should have the clock reset to five seconds since the play never happened. But, and I'm not clear from your description, if the play was run and the foul was a live ball foul during the play, then you could have an untimed down or Auburn could decline the penalty and the game ends.
School Bus Driver
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While I didn't see the game, this is probably what happened. It's the same as in college football where if there is a foul, in this case a personal foul, between downs and before the chains have been set with the new line to gain, the penalty is enforced and then the chains are set. So it is, in fact, first and 10.
Yup. Or technically, a backward pass which is still alive. This is the end of the JMU - South Dakota State game that someone just called me about. He thought the whistle had blown and if so, the ref may have felt the QB had "given himself up" knowing what the purpose of the running around was. In truth, the QB should have killed the clock running around and then gone to a knee to end the game.
No one would decline the opportunity to score points. But in the case of the SupervBowl, the PAT score wasn't needed. The game had been decided. It's similar cat other levels. If the score might make a difference (e.g. as a tie breaker in league play or seeding) you have the try. If not, you can walk away...or decline.
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