Competition Committee Admits Matthews Hit On Cousins Wasn't a Foul
NOW they tell us.
By PackerAaron
Happy Tuesday.
From @NFLGameDay: Competition Committee members expect roughing the passer penalties to decrease, while noting the Clay Matthews hit on Kirk Cousins was not thought to be a foul. Story: https://t.co/cKLIkTZb6Z ... Video pic.twitter.com/2v0DaHyYkZ
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 30, 2018
From Ian's story:
According to several people who were on the call, the expectation is that there will be fewer roughing the passer calls moving forward. The league is emphasizing to officials they need to be sure a player applied all or most of his body weight when making a hit before throwing the flag, sources said.
Many of the competition committee members felt the hit by Packers pass rusher Clay Matthews on Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins in Week 2 was not a foul, sources said.
The Matthews hit was of the "scoop-and-pull" variety, and it's considered a judgment call. However, the emphasis on the competition committee call was every element must be present to throw the flag -- in this case, a scoop, a pull/lift and body weight -- and the consensus was Matthews didn't land on Cousins with his all or most of his weight.
First the Fail Mary, now this.
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Comments (34)
PackfanNY
October 02, 2018 at 11:00 am
Uh, yeah, OK. It only took the NFL four weeks to say what every average football fan already knew. Not a roughing the passer foul. Should have been an interception, and should have been a Packers win.
Will the Packers be getting the win back? Thanks NFL.
Turophile
October 02, 2018 at 01:27 pm
I've ranted (too much really) on this before, but I'm glad to see the Matthews hit retroactively called as 'no penalty'.
The shame is that it took huge media reaction to produce that change of heart........and it makes Riveron look like an idiot for claiming the hit by Clay would be used as a training video (it never was). As Coldworld pointed out in a post further down here, that fortress mentality needs to stop.
I do hope this is a wake-up call to that committee that they need to be transparent......... and they need to admit when they got things wrong. No more " I support my guys decision, (even when it is wrong)". Ref's aren't shrinking violets (or they wouldn't ref an NFL game), so they can stand being told a decision was wrong. In the long run, it makes them better.
As we have already seen this week, the 'roughing the passer' calls are less than half the weekly average of previous weeks (and it would have been lower still if the Chargers players particularly, had learned anything from previous weeks).
jeremyjjbrown
October 02, 2018 at 01:47 pm
Riveron should be immediately fired.
Turophile
October 02, 2018 at 03:45 pm
Although it might surprise you, I disagree with that. Allowing him to continue, having learned from his mistake, might be a good thing.
I'd suggest he is kept on, and then see if he makes another PR disaster. If he does THEN he's gone, because he cannot learn. If he has learned from the mistake, then it was a valuable and productive lesson.
jeremyjjbrown
October 03, 2018 at 12:42 am
Well, I hope your right, because the NFL is using at least the first part of your plan.
Oppy
October 03, 2018 at 03:07 pm
It's gonna be awesome when the NFL has physicists on the officiating crew that will calculate the sums of forces and accelerations of QB hits before the refs throw the r̶e̶d̶ yellow (thanks 4zone!) flag.
I can't wait!
Rebecca
October 02, 2018 at 11:26 am
Best comment ever!
jeremyjjbrown
October 02, 2018 at 01:49 pm
It'll never happen. The ability to apply logic disqualifies you immediately for employment at NFL headquarters.
4zone
October 02, 2018 at 06:26 pm
Sorry, it's a yellow flag
Oppy
October 03, 2018 at 03:04 pm
Holy crap, of course you are right! :)
Edited.
jlc1
October 02, 2018 at 11:54 am
Packers Win! Packers Win! Right?
Coldworld
October 02, 2018 at 12:05 pm
Well at least somebody shut down Riveron and his knee jerk refusal to admit error.
Of course it might just be that the cries of BS from the consumers and pundits got loud enough to penatrate the fortress mentality of the NFL
TheBigCheeze
October 02, 2018 at 12:23 pm
....a lot of good it does NOW......and against the purple pukes to boot......inept officials need to be fined like the players......
Irish_Cheesehead
October 02, 2018 at 12:26 pm
So if it wasn't roughing the passer, why not fine the official thousands of dollars. Perhaps that would improve his judgement just a little!
Turophile
October 02, 2018 at 12:34 pm
A little thought will give you several reasons why this will not happen.
With that policy, what you would end up with is even less honesty post-game, even more fortress mentality by the rules committee, and hardly anyone willing to be a ref (so the quality of refereeing will fall badly).
SJ EC
October 02, 2018 at 12:45 pm
Totally agree with that statement, but I really feel that there needs to be some greater form of accountability... I understand that only the “best” officials get to call post-season games, but I think there needs to be a some sort of disciplinary action for completely incorrect or missed calls.
Turophile
October 02, 2018 at 01:31 pm
To some extent that process already happens with the refs being graded on their games. Maybe the game needs full time refs ?
Even better,the penalty for being a poor ref means he gets to referee the ever-dirty Seahawks games (joke.....).
4zone
October 02, 2018 at 06:28 pm
I thought the refs started to be full time this year.
Thegreatreynoldo
October 03, 2018 at 01:28 am
The NFL has about a score of full time refs. The officials are part-time (because the NFL doesn't want to pay for benefits). However, even rookie officials get $78,000 per year with experienced officials breaking $100K. The head referees get over $200,000 per year, with those that routinely ref playoff games reaching $400,000+ per year.
Each officiating crew has 7 members. Since there are 15 games per week, that means there are a minimum of 105 NFL officials and certainly more than that. About a fifth are full time, but all are well paid. The strange rule is that the part-time officials making $78K to $100K have to have a primary job that pays more. Hochuli was a partner in a law firm as he worked his way up the ranks.
Turophile
October 05, 2018 at 05:50 pm
Good to know. Thanks TGR.
Irish_Cheesehead
October 02, 2018 at 09:49 pm
A little thought and you would realize I was kidding ;)
Since'61
October 02, 2018 at 12:46 pm
Dear NFL competition committee: Thanks a lot.
Dumb Chooches!!! Since ‘61
Handsback
October 02, 2018 at 01:11 pm
It won't improve until they have paid full-time officials. Right now they are just too reactive to new rules.....
scullyitsme
October 02, 2018 at 01:19 pm
Finally packer fans and average citizens unite and apply pressure, the large men in suits cave, ever so slightly. You know if any owner dropped a penny, they would do anything to get it back including bending over to get it, If you Know what I mean.
thebeast431
October 02, 2018 at 01:56 pm
If so, how did this occur?
NFL to use Clay Matthews penalty in teaching video
Doug Niemczynski
October 02, 2018 at 02:37 pm
Ok. But now we want our tie to be posted as a WIN !!! Sorry, isn't enough.
KnockTheSnotOutOfYou
October 02, 2018 at 03:56 pm
The maddest I've been from watching football in the past 12 + years by far allowing Vikings to tie because of terrible call.
daveinTX
October 02, 2018 at 06:25 pm
This is PR, damage control, not a solution. There will be fewer penalties, with even more inconsistency. 61’s suggestion of making QB hits reviewable is a very good one. They should make it “a mandatory review” similar to turnovers and TDs. Anytime a QB is hit, review it. flag or no flag. If after review it is determined to be a penalty, mark it off. If the hit is reviewed as ‘malicious’, then immediately eject the defender.
4zone
October 02, 2018 at 06:30 pm
Would have to shorten each quarter to 12 minutes.
daveinTX
October 02, 2018 at 07:49 pm
Agree, 12 minute quarters would also make the game safer for the players. They could add a 5th 12-minute quarter if both teams agree before the coin toss. Five quarter games could then count as 1.25 wins in the standings. It would give a team like the Packers a chance to offset the tie game with two 5 quarter wins. Sort of like going for 2 points after an earlier missed extra point.
jhalwas611.com
October 02, 2018 at 08:45 pm
This smacks of the "Failed Mary" versus the Seahacks and the replacement refs. The result isn't changed, the standings aren't changed and potential post-season play remains affected.
Don McGlynn
October 02, 2018 at 10:31 pm
Packer fan since the Lombardi era. My adult children were witnesses to the Hail Mary debacle vs. the hawks. This Clay Mathews penalty call nearly sent me packing from the NFL for the remander of the season. Talk about a psychological smack to the face of our team. Watching MM toss a fit on the sidelines was justified. One more BS call that changes the game outcome and I'm gone.
marpag1
October 03, 2018 at 09:19 am
I still think that a lot of posters are missing the real problem. I hear people say, "Fine refs who make bad calls." Or "nothing will change until we get full time refs."
Hey, it's NOT the ref... it's the RULE. The refs are calling it EXACTLY THE WAY THEY WERE TOLD TO CALL IT. The NFL even sent out tweets immediately after saying "This is a foul." They said they would use it as a teaching video, for cryin' out loud.
It's a stupid, lame-ass rule, and the refs are calling it just as stupidly as it actually reads.
Turophile
October 05, 2018 at 05:57 pm
I agree the problem is not the ref, but I disagree that the rule is the real problem marpag1.
It is NOT the rule. It is THE INTERPRETATION of the rule. It is the extra emphasis put on that call, that has made it unbalanced.