The Jeffery OPI calls

[jason]

Like it or not, the three calls on Alshon were legit offensive pass interference calls. What's more, they should be a damning enough reason to fire Drake's non-coaching ass. Allow me to explain...

 

When one of the deep officials (Field Judge, Back Judge, Side Judge) look for offensive pass interference, they look for three specific things:

1. Push off (with arm extension makes it much easier to see)

2. Blocking while the ball is in the air

3. Driving through a defender

 

I can honestly say I've never seen one WR get three OPI calls on him in a single game, but all three fall into one of the above categories. When those officials get graded, they are asked to categorize each of the fouls they call. This is not some secret knowledge. The NFLRA tells the teams what is going on. So the Bears should know what is going to get a flag. Hell, they have preseason scrimmages/meetings where the NFLRA tells the teams what they are looking for. And that's why it's so frustrating that not only did Jeffery not correct his play, but that Drake didn't begin to tell him what he was doing wrong.

 

OPI #1 - He clearly man-handled the DB. There is no question about it. If you disagree - and believe me, I understand because I'm a die-hard Bears fan - you should take off the rose-colored glasses. That dude went flying. Category #1: push off.

 

OPI #2 - He extended the arm. Easy call, easy to categorize. Category #1: push off.

 

OPI #3 - This one was even easier than #2 because his arm was fully extended. Sure, it's one of those back shoulder throws where there is always separation, but the simple fact is he extended his arm. Category #1: push off.

 

So where was Drake in all of this? Why wasn't he telling the young WR to be a little more subtle with his contact?

 

 

Having said that, the Bears got screwed by the fact the DPI wasn't called on the last throw to Jeffery. The DB definitely grabbed jersey and hindered the WR's movement.

[adam]

Jason,

I agree that all calls were PI, but the defender is hand checking the entire time as well, where is the illegal contact? Also, on the first one in the endzone, there was a lot of acting on the part of the DB, unless Alshon has super human strength. He still pushed off, but the flop made it look much worse. On the one down the sideline in the endzone, how does the side judge not call it from 5 feet away, but the back judge does from 25 yards away? Even Aikman was questioning the calls, and the non-calls.

[Connorbear]

They had a former referee on the radio this morning and he said two of the three were legit. He said on the other the defender grabbed Jeffrey's facemask and it appeared Jeffrey was reacting to that.

 

Peace

 

[jason]

Jason,

I agree that all calls were PI, but the defender is hand checking the entire time as well, where is the illegal contact? Also, on the first one in the endzone, there was a lot of acting on the part of the DB, unless Alshon has super human strength. He still pushed off, but the flop made it look much worse. On the one down the sideline in the endzone, how does the side judge not call it from 5 feet away, but the back judge does from 25 yards away? Even Aikman was questioning the calls, and the non-calls.

 

First, they have to allow some chicken-fighting or there would be a flag on every play. Unless there is some restriction, however, they're not going to call it. Maybe they could call illegal contact on one of those, maybe all of those, but they don't call illegal contact for minimal touching.

 

As for the first one, it doesn't take a bunch of strength to toss someone down when they area already running that way. Was it a bit of acting? Maybe. But that same play is going to get called 99.9% of the time.

 

As for the other one you mentioned, let's get one thing out of the way: Aikman is a dumbass who knows next to nothing about officiating. The reason the BJ threw the flag was that he had a different angle on the play. Simple as that. And, trust me on this, he would not have gone "fishing in someone else's pond" if he wasn't absolutely sure his call could be backed up by video review. This happens a lot on arm bars and arm restrictions, when the side or field judge sees two players running side by side, but from the middle of the field the back judge can see a foul.

[adam]

First, they have to allow some chicken-fighting or there would be a flag on every play. Unless there is some restriction, however, they're not going to call it. Maybe they could call illegal contact on one of those, maybe all of those, but they don't call illegal contact for minimal touching.

 

As for the first one, it doesn't take a bunch of strength to toss someone down when they area already running that way. Was it a bit of acting? Maybe. But that same play is going to get called 99.9% of the time.

 

As for the other one you mentioned, let's get one thing out of the way: Aikman is a dumbass who knows next to nothing about officiating. The reason the BJ threw the flag was that he had a different angle on the play. Simple as that. And, trust me on this, he would not have gone "fishing in someone else's pond" if he wasn't absolutely sure his call could be backed up by video review. This happens a lot on arm bars and arm restrictions, when the side or field judge sees two players running side by side, but from the middle of the field the back judge can see a foul.

Like I said, they all were PI, but the calls in general for the day were going against the Bears. If they are going to call those, they have to call the one on the last play to Jeffery, and they didn't. The calls were not even. They also missed a blatant hands to the face when Raji hit Cutler, then Peppers gets a clean hit on Rodgers and gets 15 yards. The entire game was called like that.

[jason]

Like I said, they all were PI, but the calls in general for the day were going against the Bears. If they are going to call those, they have to call the one on the last play to Jeffery, and they didn't. The calls were not even. They also missed a blatant hands to the face when Raji hit Cutler, then Peppers gets a clean hit on Rodgers and gets 15 yards. The entire game was called like that.

 

I, too, felt the calls were very one-sided. It seems like it's always that way against the Bears.

 

The Raji hit on Cutler absolutely has to get called.

The DPI against Jeffery absolutely has to get called.

 

As for the Peppers hit, it was borderline. There are timing mechanisms each official uses, and if the hit is afterwards then it's a foul. Simple. Whether the officials yells out, "Ball's away!" or counts, it's ultimately judgement that I have no problem with. Peppers could have easily stopped. Granted, I wish they would let players play football a little more, but that's what the NFL is becoming.

[madlithuanian]

The good teams get the calls.

 

I, too, felt the calls were very one-sided. It seems like it's always that way against the Bears.

 

The Raji hit on Cutler absolutely has to get called.

The DPI against Jeffery absolutely has to get called.

 

As for the Peppers hit, it was borderline. There are timing mechanisms each official uses, and if the hit is afterwards then it's a foul. Simple. Whether the officials yells out, "Ball's away!" or counts, it's ultimately judgement that I have no problem with. Peppers could have easily stopped. Granted, I wish they would let players play football a little more, but that's what the NFL is becoming.

 

[Bears4Ever_34]

I thought the one on the touchdown was highly questionable. Not sure it was as much of a push off as it was a slip. The first one they missed, where Jeffery grabbed the facemask wasn't called. The first one they called on him though was legit. However the 3rd one near the sidelines was ridiculous, as was the one they didn't call on Sam Shields at the end of the game.

[Alaskan Grizzly]

First, they have to allow some chicken-fighting or there would be a flag on every play. Unless there is some restriction, however, they're not going to call it.

 

 

Precisely. So if they are going to call three OPI on one guy because he stepped over the line from "chicken fighting" then how in all that is sane do they miss a blatant call against the same defender with the same receiver literally minutes later? It is totally inexcusable. If the officials were so diligent to begin with they should have been throughout.

 

 

 

As for the other one you mentioned, let's get one thing out of the way: Aikman is a dumbass who knows next to nothing about officiating.

 

Sorry but the guy is in the Hall of Fame and that sadly does mean something. Hes played the game of QB and does understand the game probably better than most of those refs. The hit from Peppers on Rodgers was a prime example. Aikman will almost always come to the defense of QBs on calls like that and he was the first to say he didn't like the call. Again and as before if that was so "bad" a hit why (like someone else posted yesterday) half the hits on Cutler that look like that not called? Let alone a simple hand to the face early in the game. As Aikman correctly pointed out, the job of the referee in that particular interest (Raji hit on Cutler) is to be watching the QB and he failed.

 

Bottom line, the officiating yesterday was deplorable. Even a good friend of mine from GB agreed.

[jason]

I thought the one on the touchdown was highly questionable. Not sure it was as much of a push off as it was a slip. The first one they missed, where Jeffery grabbed the facemask wasn't called. The first one they called on him though was legit. However the 3rd one near the sidelines was ridiculous, as was the one they didn't call on Sam Shields at the end of the game.

 

The third one, from an officiating perspective, was probably the easiest one. He clearly made contact with his hand, extended his arm, and that extension is what gave him the separation.

[jason]

Precisely. So if they are going to call three OPI on one guy because he stepped over the line from "chicken fighting" then how in all that is sane do they miss a blatant call against the same defender with the same receiver literally minutes later? It is totally inexcusable. If the officials were so diligent to begin with they should have been throughout.

 

Sorry but the guy is in the Hall of Fame and that sadly does mean something. Hes played the game of QB and does understand the game probably better than most of those refs. The hit from Peppers on Rodgers was a prime example. Aikman will almost always come to the defense of QBs on calls like that and he was the first to say he didn't like the call. Again and as before if that was so "bad" a hit why (like someone else posted yesterday) half the hits on Cutler that look like that not called? Let alone a simple hand to the face early in the game. As Aikman correctly pointed out, the job of the referee in that particular interest (Raji hit on Cutler) is to be watching the QB and he failed.

 

Bottom line, the officiating yesterday was deplorable. Even a good friend of mine from GB agreed.

 

1. They whiffed big time on the non-call against Jeffery. That should have been a DPI. But that doesn't mean the OPI calls were incorrect.

 

2. You misunderstand what I'm saying. He probably knows more about football than most of the refs, but he doesn't know more about the rules than most of the refs. That's fact. Players and coaches are notoriously ignorant about the intricacies of the rules, and the officials out there are virtual rule books. They've literally got 99% of the rules memorized. So when he comments about what an official should see, should throw a flag on, etc., he's got no leg to stand on. He simply doesn't know what it means to be an official, and he almost certainly doesn't know the rules as well as the officials.

[Chitownhustla]

Like it or not, the three calls on Alshon were legit offensive pass interference calls. What's more, they should be a damning enough reason to fire Drake's non-coaching ass. Allow me to explain...

 

When one of the deep officials (Field Judge, Back Judge, Side Judge) look for offensive pass interference, they look for three specific things:

1. Push off (with arm extension makes it much easier to see)

2. Blocking while the ball is in the air

3. Driving through a defender

 

I can honestly say I've never seen one WR get three OPI calls on him in a single game, but all three fall into one of the above categories. When those officials get graded, they are asked to categorize each of the fouls they call. This is not some secret knowledge. The NFLRA tells the teams what is going on. So the Bears should know what is going to get a flag. Hell, they have preseason scrimmages/meetings where the NFLRA tells the teams what they are looking for. And that's why it's so frustrating that not only did Jeffery not correct his play, but that Drake didn't begin to tell him what he was doing wrong.

 

OPI #1 - He clearly man-handled the DB. There is no question about it. If you disagree - and believe me, I understand because I'm a die-hard Bears fan - you should take off the rose-colored glasses. That dude went flying. Category #1: push off.

 

OPI #2 - He extended the arm. Easy call, easy to categorize. Category #1: push off.

 

OPI #3 - This one was even easier than #2 because his arm was fully extended. Sure, it's one of those back shoulder throws where there is always separation, but the simple fact is he extended his arm. Category #1: push off.

 

So where was Drake in all of this? Why wasn't he telling the young WR to be a little more subtle with his contact?

 

 

Having said that, the Bears got screwed by the fact the DPI wasn't called on the last throw to Jeffery. The DB definitely grabbed jersey and hindered the WR's movement.

 

My only problem with the calls are you see these same types of plays in every game and most of the time are not called. I really disagree with the third one, which i believe was the one long pass down the sideline.

 

Did you guys think the Conte PI was correct?

 

 

 

 

[Bears4Ever_34]

The third one, from an officiating perspective, was probably the easiest one. He clearly made contact with his hand, extended his arm, and that extension is what gave him the separation.

meh.. The push off, if that's what you want to call it, was far less egregious than some of the previous ones. I've seen worse plays that weren't called. Everything is arbitrary with figuring out what is and what's not pass interference anyways. If they actually called pass interference everytime a receiver made an extension with his arm, then it should be called on virtually every pass attempt where the ball is thrown down field.

 

It's whatever though. I'm not going to blame the officials for being the exact cause that kept the Bears from winning the game. They made some horrible calls, both ways, though I'd say the Bears got the shorter end of the stick on a lot of them.

[Ed Hochuli 3:16]

I, too, felt the calls were very one-sided. It seems like it's always that way against the Bears.

 

The Raji hit on Cutler absolutely has to get called.

The DPI against Jeffery absolutely has to get called.

 

As for the Peppers hit, it was borderline. There are timing mechanisms each official uses, and if the hit is afterwards then it's a foul. Simple. Whether the officials yells out, "Ball's away!" or counts, it's ultimately judgement that I have no problem with. Peppers could have easily stopped. Granted, I wish they would let players play football a little more, but that's what the NFL is becoming.

I just disagree on Peppers. He's a 275 pound man who went unblocked. He hit Rodgers like 1 second after throwing. How is a man that big supposed to just stop or swerve away? I'm guessing physics says that that's practically impossible.

[Mongo3451]

1) Totally agree with the Jeffery calls. I would have been livid had a Packer reciever push off on Tillman like that. You simply can not get full extension like that. Jefferey will learn the subtle push as he gets more savvy. Watch Marshall, he pushes all the time. His is a quick burst at an opportune time with no full extension. Busted everytime.

 

2) Refs gotta make the call on the jersey grab.

 

3) Peppers got hosed. He was committed. What happens if that was just a pump fake? If Cutler takes that hit there is no flag.

 

4) Criticizing Aikman is just retarded. He is the best and brightest announcer NFL broadcast has to offer. Close 2nd is Collinsworth. The refs may know the rules better, but they don't have the benefit of replay and the men in the truck pointing facts out.

[selection7]

I, too, was starting to wonder if Jeffery had lost his mind. It was like he thought maybe the rules didn't apply to him, even in the face of getting flagged over and over.

 

Maybe if he hadn't been the cause of interference so many times earlier, the refs would've given him more credit on that last non-call.

[AZ54]

Horrible game by the replacement referees and the vast majority of bad calls went GB way as usual. We got one bad call on the PI down the sideline. I don't disagree on a couple of Jeffrey's OPI calls but the one on his TD catch was a bad call, that stuff happens every play in the endzone. Other than that clearly the Packers DBs were allowed to get away with a lot of contact beyond 5 yds all game, why? Either it is or it isn't a penalty .... call it the same way for both teams.

[jason]

Horrible game by the replacement referees and the vast majority of bad calls went GB way as usual. We got one bad call on the PI down the sideline. I don't disagree on a couple of Jeffrey's OPI calls but the one on his TD catch was a bad call, that stuff happens every play in the endzone. Other than that clearly the Packers DBs were allowed to get away with a lot of contact beyond 5 yds all game, why? Either it is or it isn't a penalty .... call it the same way for both teams.

 

So two guys, side by side, where one ends up putting both of his hands on the opponent, and the opponent ends up on his back, and the result is a TD, happens every game?! I don't think so.

[jason]

4) Criticizing Aikman is just retarded. He is the best and brightest announcer NFL broadcast has to offer. Close 2nd is Collinsworth. The refs may know the rules better, but they don't have the benefit of replay and the men in the truck pointing facts out.

 

I'm just telling you how things look from an officiating perspective. He's a good announcer, but he honestly doesn't know what goes into the rule book in his own game. None of the announcers are nearly as versed as they'd like you to think. There are countless hours that go into officiating at the NFL level. Those guys usually have video review on the plane home after their game. They are graded very harshly. All that and more is why they have to have legitimate reasons for throwing flags, or they stop working NFL games. The result is that they rely on key signs, developed through a nearly unlimited film review, that says "when DPI happens, it is usually because of..." and "when OPI happens, it is usually because of..." If the officials see those criteria, they know the flag should be thrown. All of this is stuff that Aikman and other announcers aren't privy to, aren't aware of. It's the precise reason why guys like Pereira and Gerry Austin have been brought into the broadcast booth as advisers.

[Daventry]

I am not expert but I felt the first was legit, the second was a Shields flop, and the third technically maybe a call but if getting that picky Shields was way more guilty.

 

Crap officiating throughout IMO...

[DABEARSDABOMB]

Maybe if the other team isn't playing physical the whole time, you call those offensive PI. But given the way the game was being played and the amount of contact they were allowing, 2 of the 3 (at a minimum) should not have been offensive PI. They missed the one that should have been. When you watch in slow motion, its hard for me to say that Jeffrey had an advantage due to the shoving. Either way the impression (in fast vision) made things look much worse then they were and that is on Drake. He's got to coach them better.

 

 

[madlithuanian]

Just seems convenient that media darling Packers catch all the breaks...

 

...and because they are good, they will get the benefit of the doubt. Until we can best them, it will continue to shake out that way over the long haul.

 

Maybe if the other team isn't playing physical the whole time, you call those offensive PI. But given the way the game was being played and the amount of contact they were allowing, 2 of the 3 (at a minimum) should not have been offensive PI. They missed the one that should have been. When you watch in slow motion, its hard for me to say that Jeffrey had an advantage due to the shoving. Either way the impression (in fast vision) made things look much worse then they were and that is on Drake. He's got to coach them better.

 

[jason]

Maybe if the other team isn't playing physical the whole time, you call those offensive PI. But given the way the game was being played and the amount of contact they were allowing, 2 of the 3 (at a minimum) should not have been offensive PI. They missed the one that should have been. When you watch in slow motion, its hard for me to say that Jeffrey had an advantage due to the shoving. Either way the impression (in fast vision) made things look much worse then they were and that is on Drake. He's got to coach them better.

 

Ultimately, that's my point. The NFL guys make no secret about what/how they call fouls, and why they throw flags. This is readily available information for all the NFL players and coaches. And since Jeffery clearly didn't know/care about one of the tell-tale signs (i.e. extending an arm to create separation), it's on Drake, then Tice, then Lovie. Like the calls or not, they fit into the definition of OPI in the NFL Rulebook, and they fit specific criteria used by the NFL officials when making an OPI call. It's a no-brainer, and you're going to see the flag 9 out of 10 times when it's that obvious.

 

BTW - I don't know which one you are saying created no advantage, but it has to be the second one. The first one the defender ended up on the ground, and the last one was full arm extension with separation towards the sideline that was as text-book OPI as you can get.

[AZ54]

So two guys, side by side, where one ends up putting both of his hands on the opponent, and the opponent ends up on his back, and the result is a TD, happens every game?! I don't think so.

 

Your right, most DBs don't flop and whine like the Packers DBs.