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Late holding penalty frustrates Rams
By Nick Wagoner | ESPN.com
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/11990/late-holding-penalty-frustrates-rams
EARTH CITY, Mo. -- For all the things that happened to cause the St. Louis Rams' 21-0 lead to dissipate into a 34-31 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, they still had a chance to win the game in the closing minutes.
After quarterback Austin Davis found receiver Austin Pettis for a touchdown to cut it to 34-31, the Rams elected to kick off and try to get a stop on defense with all three of their timeouts and the two-minute warning available.
The Rams stuffed Dallas running back DeMarco Murray for no gain on first down to bring up second-and-10 from Dallas' 20. In need of first downs to ice the game, the Cowboys called for a pass with two and a half minutes left. Quarterback Tony Romo faked a handoff and rolled to his right. From his spot at left defensive end Eugene Sims made contact with Dallas receiver Terrance Williams, who was coming back across the formation.
Sims immediately came off of Williams and got to Romo, dropping him for an apparent sack and a loss of 11 at the Dallas 9. But a flag came out moments later. The call? Defensive holding on Sims. Instead of third-and-21 from the 9, it became first-and-10 from the 25.
Rams coach Jeff Fisher declined to comment on some of the calls that went against the Rams in the loss after the game, saying he needed to see the game tape first, but he couldn't help himself when asked about the call against Sims again.
"I'm hoping they got the wrong jersey number on the hold there on Eugene," Fisher said. "I'm really hoping that maybe there was a hold somewhere else on the defense."
By all accounts, though, the call was indeed against Sims.
A pool reporter sought explanation from referee Clete Blakeman, who offered little substance in explaining the call.
"I have not seen a replay of it, so I can't really comment on specifics like that," Blakeman said. "But that's what was reported to me -- that there was a grab and a restriction of an eligible receiver by No. 97."
Most Rams preferred not to discuss the penalty on the record for fear of fines from the league but without the recorders running, there were plenty of angry responses, most of which wouldn't be fit to print here anyway.
Further review of the play later shows the Rams have every reason to have a beef with the call. Sims did make contact with Williams but it wasn't even close to a hold. Williams was coming from inside the formation and could easily have been a blocker in that situation. At absolute worst, it was the equivalent of a jam at the line by a corner rather than a hold.
Mike Pereira, the NFL's former vice president of officiating, who offers real time analysis of calls around the league, agreed that the call was incorrect.
But for whatever reason, the Rams never seem to get the benefit of the doubt on any calls that are even close. Sims, in particular, seems a magnet for questionable flags. In the past two weeks, he's been called for four infractions for a total of 50 yards. Earlier Sunday, he earned a flag for roughing the passer when it appeared he hit Romo on the shoulder with his hand.
Dallas eventually punted but from its 32 rather than deep in its own territory and by then the Rams had burned all of their timeouts. They started their final drive at their 14 and came up short when Davis had to force a pass down the sideline in an effort to make up the yards lost by the penalty. That pass was intercepted and Dallas kneeled twice for the win.
By Nick Wagoner | ESPN.com
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/11990/late-holding-penalty-frustrates-rams
EARTH CITY, Mo. -- For all the things that happened to cause the St. Louis Rams' 21-0 lead to dissipate into a 34-31 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, they still had a chance to win the game in the closing minutes.
After quarterback Austin Davis found receiver Austin Pettis for a touchdown to cut it to 34-31, the Rams elected to kick off and try to get a stop on defense with all three of their timeouts and the two-minute warning available.
The Rams stuffed Dallas running back DeMarco Murray for no gain on first down to bring up second-and-10 from Dallas' 20. In need of first downs to ice the game, the Cowboys called for a pass with two and a half minutes left. Quarterback Tony Romo faked a handoff and rolled to his right. From his spot at left defensive end Eugene Sims made contact with Dallas receiver Terrance Williams, who was coming back across the formation.
Sims immediately came off of Williams and got to Romo, dropping him for an apparent sack and a loss of 11 at the Dallas 9. But a flag came out moments later. The call? Defensive holding on Sims. Instead of third-and-21 from the 9, it became first-and-10 from the 25.
Rams coach Jeff Fisher declined to comment on some of the calls that went against the Rams in the loss after the game, saying he needed to see the game tape first, but he couldn't help himself when asked about the call against Sims again.
"I'm hoping they got the wrong jersey number on the hold there on Eugene," Fisher said. "I'm really hoping that maybe there was a hold somewhere else on the defense."
By all accounts, though, the call was indeed against Sims.
A pool reporter sought explanation from referee Clete Blakeman, who offered little substance in explaining the call.
"I have not seen a replay of it, so I can't really comment on specifics like that," Blakeman said. "But that's what was reported to me -- that there was a grab and a restriction of an eligible receiver by No. 97."
Most Rams preferred not to discuss the penalty on the record for fear of fines from the league but without the recorders running, there were plenty of angry responses, most of which wouldn't be fit to print here anyway.
Further review of the play later shows the Rams have every reason to have a beef with the call. Sims did make contact with Williams but it wasn't even close to a hold. Williams was coming from inside the formation and could easily have been a blocker in that situation. At absolute worst, it was the equivalent of a jam at the line by a corner rather than a hold.
Mike Pereira, the NFL's former vice president of officiating, who offers real time analysis of calls around the league, agreed that the call was incorrect.
But for whatever reason, the Rams never seem to get the benefit of the doubt on any calls that are even close. Sims, in particular, seems a magnet for questionable flags. In the past two weeks, he's been called for four infractions for a total of 50 yards. Earlier Sunday, he earned a flag for roughing the passer when it appeared he hit Romo on the shoulder with his hand.
Dallas eventually punted but from its 32 rather than deep in its own territory and by then the Rams had burned all of their timeouts. They started their final drive at their 14 and came up short when Davis had to force a pass down the sideline in an effort to make up the yards lost by the penalty. That pass was intercepted and Dallas kneeled twice for the win.
