Some Believe NFL Referees Have To Pay, Stop Making Excuses For Bad Calls

By Christy Strawser

DETROIT (CBS Detroit) If deflategate taught the world anything, it's that official NFL decisions can be overturned.

But how often can they be overturned before referees have to answer for them in a real way, with penalties and fines for bad calls that cost teams games?

After a heartbreaking loss to the Seahawks where a referee's bad call played an integral role, the Lions' James Ihedigbo said it's time for the NFL to answer for itself. In this case, the back judge ruled that Seattle's K.J. Wright did not intentionally bat the ball out of the end zone, though he clearly had batted said ball out of the end zone.

Called the correct way, the play would have put the Lions' Calvin Johnson in a position to score. The NFL later admitted it was a bad call, but that explanation was all the Lions got. And they lost the game.

"It's costing wins and losses," Ihedigbo said to MLive. "A simple, 'Sorry, we made a mistake' doesn't suffice."

Mike Stone, longtime sports analyst and morning show co-host on 97.1 The Ticket in Detroit, says referees should be held accountable for bad calls the same way anyone would be if they really messed up on the job. "They should be disciplined somehow, definitely," he said. But will they be? "They might be, but if they are we'll never know about it," he said.

Ihedigbo went on to tell MLive he believes games should be immediately stopped when an official at NFL headquarters in New York notices a bad call was made. And whoever made the bad call needs to have to answer for it in some way.

"It's not going to change it to a win," he said. "I mean, it's just unfortunate. I mean, they got to be held accountable, just as players are in terms of equipment violations, whatever it might be. There's a standard that players are held to on the field, there's a standard that coaches are held to on the field, there's a standard that teams are held to on the field and there has to be a standard that officials are held to as well. You can't just apologize."

ESPN commentator Ray Lewis obviously feels the same say judging by his pointed questions -- and his face -- after the Monday night game. "What happens to the official now?" he asked in a post-game interview.

There was no answer forthcoming, and Lewis' facial expression is priceless.

The call was immediately controversial, with ESPN making a quick call to Dean Blandino, the NFL head of officiating, for explanation after the social media sphere exploded with complaints about the call.

"You can't bat the ball in any direction in the end zone," Blandino said, adding, "That is a foul for an illegal bat."

He went on to say the back judge didn't feel, in his opinion, it was an overt act so he didn't throw the flag.

"Detroit would keep the football," Blandino said, explaining what should have happened. He went on to say the play was not reviewable on replay, by NFL rules.

"It is a judgement call, it is an intentional act," he said.

Should the rule be changed so that anything that affects the trajectory of a game becomes a reviewable play?

"This will be something that the competition committee takes a look at," Blandino said.

In:
• Detroit Lions
• Seattle Seahawks