The First Down

**akashicrecorder** · 11-25-2012, 09:40 PM

Let's discuss this. And admit what we truly think happened on 4th and 29.

For my money, I believe Rice may have been a hair short but that, because the sticks were moved, things were so much of a mess that the referees had to resort to guesswork.

Oh, and Philip Rivers doesn't think he got it, doesn't think Rice thinks he got it, doesn't think the Ravens think he got it, and doesn't think anyone in the stadium thinks he got it.

**pslholder96** · 11-25-2012, 09:44 PM

I could care less. We've been on the short end of some really bad calls over the years. And yes I do think we got a favorable spot but football is game of inches and luck

**bmoreravengirl** · 11-25-2012, 09:45 PM

I truly thought it was going to be overturned. I also truly thought I was going to be screaming bloody murder after it was overturned.

BTW, are the Chargers ever going to come here? I'm about sick & tired of us having to go to San Diego.

**Ravenboy2003** · 11-25-2012, 09:46 PM

Probably a half yard short based on where his knee first touched.. but the replay angles were shitty. QualComm is one of those old stadiums where the game day cameras are in weird spots which makes for some awkward angles on replay. I think it might have cost them one today.

**Maelstrom** · 11-25-2012, 09:47 PM

I think the refs still missed the spot by about 6 inches but that the Ravens would still have made the first down, moved sticks or not.

I also think Phillip Rivers should say he could have played a little better, smarter and harder instead of insinuating that the outcome of the game was outside of his control and adding that no one thinks Ray Rice made that play. Low class.

**Sua Sponte** · 11-25-2012, 09:47 PM

Lets. Was it a bad spot and even a bad re-spot. Yes. Was it a 1st down, it was really close. If you look at the knee going down and the out stretched Ray Rice it was really hard to tell, he was definitely past the 35 yard line by a foot or more, but it is really hard to tell with the angle of the camera. I say he was short, but it was a judgement call and the camera angles could not really justify over turning it. The marker appeared to be at the 34 and Rice was damn close and the spot although favored the Ravens was still more than a ball length past the marker.

**Bhcforlife** · 11-25-2012, 09:51 PM

The review has to clear and from everything I saw, it wasn't. Could have gone either way. Game of inches. Maybe we should be happy that we cheered for Gene's crew when they arrived on field back in week four. I kid, of course.

Rivers thoughts are irrelevant...he has always been one of the biggest babies in the league when things don't go his way and his comments are par for the course for him.

**Ravenboy2003** · 11-25-2012, 09:53 PM

Originally Posted by bmoreravengirl

BTW, are the Chargers ever going to come here? I'm about sick & tired of us having to go to San Diego.

The game was supposed to be here this year.. then the league did some weird adjustment thing to try and cut back on the total amount of cross-country trips that teams have to make in one year.. So San Diego got it flipped to a home game.

The good thing for us is the Denver game ended up here instead of at Denver due to the flip. So we get Denver here instead of going out there to face Manning.

**Brian Pettit** · 11-25-2012, 09:58 PM

Very close. It looked like to me, during the play, the line judge on the bottom of the screen somehow got behind the play and was sort of out of position to make the correct spot. Hence it being spotted at the 33. Oh well, you win some and lose some. Glad we came out on top

**bacchys** · 11-25-2012, 10:05 PM

Being a homer, I naturally thought it was a first down in real time. The replay angles didn't show a definitive view of where the ball should have been, and I think the refs would have been better off saying the video was "inconclusive" than going with the dog-and-pony show of pretending they could tell where the ball was when Rice's knee hit the grass.

I have enjoyed the Squealer fans at Squealer Nation whining about the refs in our game and theirs. I have a friend who is a Squealer fan, and he used to insist that no Squealer fans ever whine about officiating. It didn't take many cut-n-paste emails from that site to shut him up on that score, LOL...

**Paintballguy** · 11-25-2012, 10:08 PM

At the end of the day spotting the ball is very imprecise and the refs called it how they saw it. That's football. The chargers had plenty of chances to stop rice well before the first down marker so I don't want to hear any bitching from them.

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**bacchys** · 11-25-2012, 10:10 PM

That was a great block by Boldin. Q was ballin' today.

**Boulderraven** · 11-25-2012, 10:11 PM

Well the spot was a tough call for the refs, they moved the ball back a yard and was inconclusive. I thought the replay system was to overturn bad calls only, not to pick hairs. One thing I liked about the replacement refs was the stuck to the play on the feild UNLESS is was a bad call on the feild and it was obvious. The replacement refs are better, IMO than the regular ones.

One thing to remember was that was set up by a phantom holding penalty on Yanda on Rices 6 yard reception, that put the Ravens at 1St and 20 intstead of 2 and 4. That call was horrendous.

**Paintballguy** · 11-25-2012, 10:13 PM

Originally Posted by Boulderraven

Well the spot was the a tough call for the refs, they moved the ball back a yard and was inconclusive. I thought the replay system was to overturn bad calls only, not to pick hairs. One thing I liked about the replacement refs was the stuck to the play on the feild UNLESS is was a bad call on the feild and it was obvious. The replacement refs are better, IMO than the regular ones.

One thing to remember was that was set up by a phantom holding penalty on Yanda on Rices 6 yard reception, that put the Ravens at 1St and 20 intstead of 2 and 4. That call was horrendous.

I agree they made this huge production out of the spot. If they didn't see any glaring evidence of an incorrect spot which there wasn't then they should've just rolled with the initial spot.

And that holding call on yanda was complete bs. Yanda just legally manhandled the linemen.

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**bacchys** · 11-25-2012, 10:16 PM

Every now and again the refs put the lie in the "indisputable" standard for review. The Holmes touchdown in Baltimore a few years back was one. This is another.

**Ravenboy2003** · 11-25-2012, 10:16 PM

Originally Posted by bacchys

I have enjoyed the Squealer fans at Squealer Nation whining about the refs in our game and theirs. I have a friend who is a Squealer fan, and he used to insist that no Squealer fans ever whine about officiating. It didn't take many cut-n-paste emails from that site to shut him up on that score, LOL...

Ron Winter's crew was pretty bad today, but they were equally bad at tossing laundry at both the Browns and Steelers..

Now.. I will say this.. the Steelers screwed themselves by using all their timeouts. I think they would have gotten the ball back one more time had they been able to challenge the Richardson fumble.

http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2012/11/...lers-vs-browns

**RavensNest** · 11-25-2012, 10:23 PM

How about the terrible spot flacco got on the qb draw on 3rd down? Chargers need to stop their bitching.

**Ravenous1** · 11-25-2012, 10:37 PM

Originally Posted by RavensNest

How about the terrible spot flacco got on the qb draw on 3rd down? Chargers need to stop their bitching.

Yea totally agree.
If Rice did not get it then he was within a foot or less.
Chargers should do a whole lot more bitching about the fact they allowed him to get close enough on 4th and 29 that a spot could influence the game. Thats on them...simple as that.

**FlawlessVictory** · 11-25-2012, 10:54 PM

I think Rice might have been just short but it was close, and no good angle on replay. If the refs thought it was that close, the call on the field should have been that he was short and it still could be reviewed.

The re-spot definitely benefited the good guys

Originally Posted by Boulderraven

One thing to remember was that was set up by a phantom holding penalty on Yanda on Rices 6 yard reception, that put the Ravens at 1St and 20 intstead of 2 and 4. That call was horrendous.

Originally Posted by Ravenboy2003

I will say this.. the Steelers screwed themselves by using all their timeouts.

.. or by turning the ball over EIGHT times.