British
14 years ago
Sounds like a close call.

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcnorth/post/_/id/3342/questionable-call-illegal-contact-on-harris 

Todays topic comes from Sunday nights Chicago-Green Bay game. Jeff of Naperville, Ill., wrote that it was appalling to see the game nearly decided on an illegal contact call against Packers cornerback Al Harris in the fourth quarter.

Indeed, officials whistled Harris for illegal contact against receiver Devin Hester on a third-down play at the Packers 40-yard line with 8:39 remaining in the game. Green Bay held a 13-12 lead at the time, and quarterback Jay Cutlers pass to receiver Earl Bennett had fallen incomplete. (In fact, cornerback Charles Woodson made a diving tip to alter its trajectory.) Its highly unlikely the Bears would have attempted a 57-yard field goal, and they almost certainly would have punted.

This type of call is especially frustrating, knowing it happened away from the play. When you watch the replay, it doesnt look like Cutler considered throwing to Hester. (Maybe he should have. After the contact, Hester was wide open.)

I scoured the NFL rule book to see what applied to this play. Heres what the rules allow (Section 4, Article 1 if youre interested):

Within five yards of the line of scrimmage, a defensive player may chuck an eligible receiver in front of him. The defender is allowed to maintain continuous and unbroken contact within the five-yard zone, so long as the receiver has not moved beyond a point that is even with the defender.

When you watch the replay, you see Harris lightly shove Hester just as he crossed the 35-yard line. At that point, its a judgment call by the official to determine Hesters distance from the line of scrimmage. Even though Harris contact was a routine chuck for a cornerback passing off the receiver in zone coverage, the power of the contact is not part of the rule.

But lets say you disagree that Hester was past the 5-yard marker, or you believe it was too close to call. There is another part of this rule that I cant say I was aware of (Section 4, Article 2):

Within the five-yard zone, if the player who receives the snap remains in the pocket with the ball, a defender may not make original contact in the back of a receiver, nor may he maintain contact after the receiver has moved beyond a point that is even with the defender.

When you watch the replay, Harris definitely shoves Hester on the back of his right shoulder. It wasnt hard and it didnt really knock Hester off his route. But if you want to make a strict interpretation of this rule, you can say Harris made original contact in the back of a receiver, an illegal play even if it occurs within the 5-yard radius.

I cant read the mind of the officials who made the call. But in retrospect, you can produce a rule to match the call. I acknowledge that similar plays go uncalled all the time. But was it in error? Im not sure we can make that argument. Whether the rule should be in place is another debate entirely.



Added

tags for attribution purposes. --NSD


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Brettizzle
14 years ago
No way, that should never be called. If Harris was a few yards back then I would understand. But at that point in the game and where the contact happened that should never be called. If it was a corner that doesn't have a history of being aggressive then the flag would not have been thrown.
Jermichael Finley

We will be in Indianapolis

bozz_2006
14 years ago
only he didn't "make original contact in the back of a receiver". Harris jammed him in the front of Hester's right shoulder with his right hand, and the side of Hester's right shoulder with his left hand. I don't see how that is open to interpretation; he most certainly did not make original contact in Hester's back in any way, shape, or form
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dfosterf
14 years ago

only he didn't jam him in the back of the shoulder.

"bozz_2006" wrote:




Seifert joined ESPN.com in 2008 after covering the Minnesota Vikings for the Minneapolis Star Tribune for eight years. He lives in the Twin Cities with his wife and daughter.

bozz_2006
14 years ago
thanks for illustrating that foster, but still, what he's proposing isn't even a stretch. it's a flat out load of bullshit. I live in the twin cities, and I haven't talked to a single vikings fan who thought that was a legit penalty.
UserPostedImage
dfosterf
14 years ago
I find him infuriating at times.

This would be one of those.

I bet his relatives are some of those judges deciding the Williams' wall cases.
Patlee22
14 years ago
Yeah, it's BS. Barely any contact and to have it be called in a rivarly game is a little nitpicky. Again, this kind of stuff that usually seems to get us in crucial moments.
blank
Yerko
14 years ago
The fact that someone even went into the rule book for this is beyond me. I watched the game with my father, a die-hard Chicago fan and he even said what the hell is that ref calling?

Horrible call, end of story.
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PackFanWithTwins
14 years ago
That article doesn't even deserved to be printed on a piece of toilet paper. The chuck was no were near having initial contact on Hester's back. The only logical explanation is that the Ref couldn't tell how far from the LOS the check happened because of Hester being lined up off the ball to start. And Hester's play acting after the contact, because he wasn't even an actual option for that pass.
The world needs ditch diggers too Danny!!!
gbguy20
14 years ago
regardless of whether that call was "legit" (it was ridiculous either way and should have never been called), the bears should have been flagged immediately after they snapped the ball for illegal formation. The refs fucked up bad and nearly cost us the game. There's no place for calls like that and honestly that ref deserves a good talking to and a swift kick in the ass.
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