Meh. The vertical passing game is dead. Long live the triple option.

90% luck
10% skill

I clapped in the gym in Colorado when he made that catch. It was pretty damn good.

Gives new meaning to the term "reach around"

Nah, if it had really been a great catch, he would never have been down, would have got up and scored. In the rain. While Al Michaels up in the booth was yelling "He did WHAT????"

http://youtu.be/m_dQrqiFIKI

How hard is it to check with the ref if you are off the line? We've got semi literate high school wideouts that can remember to signal the ref if they are supposed to be off the line for a given formation - the ref will even tell you to back up or move forward depending on if you want to be on or off.... jeeze.

And that broke the resolve of the Chiefs. Sad that it had to be that way, but there you go.

Side question:

How the F is that pass interference? The announcer says something about "face guarding"... are defenders not allowed to put their hands in the air or something?

No, the Giants still won the Super Bowl

DrBear: Nah, if it had really been a great catch, he would never have been down, would have got up and scored. In the rain. While Al Michaels up in the booth was yelling "He did WHAT????"

http://youtu.be/m_dQrqiFIKI

Jumping Jesus on a pogo stick, that was 11 years ago??

/I is old.

50% Skill
50% Luck

Partisan: Side question:

How the F is that pass interference? The announcer says something about "face guarding"... are defenders not allowed to put their hands in the air or something?

While face guarding (not looking at the ball and waving your arms around to block the receiver's view" is no DPI in the NFL (it used to be), there are 6 actions which qualify as DPI.
This case likely fell under either:
1) contact by a defender who is not playing the ball that keeps the intended receiver from making the catch
5) cutting off a potential receiver's path while making no effort to defend the ball.

The key element is that the defender did not look back at the ball and made no attempt himself to make a play at the ball to either intercept or knock it away.

Rising_Zan_Samurai_Gunman: Partisan: Side question:

How the F is that pass interference? The announcer says something about "face guarding"... are defenders not allowed to put their hands in the air or something?

While face guarding (not looking at the ball and waving your arms around to block the receiver's view" is no DPI in the NFL (it used to be), there are 6 actions which qualify as DPI.
This case likely fell under either:
1) contact by a defender who is not playing the ball that keeps the intended receiver from making the catch
5) cutting off a potential receiver's path while making no effort to defend the ball.

The key element is that the defender did not look back at the ball and made no attempt himself to make a play at the ball to either intercept or knock it away.

Since he caught the ball, I would eliminate #1.

Rising_Zan_Samurai_Gunman: While face guarding (not looking at the ball and waving your arms around to block the receiver's view" is no DPI in the NFL (it used to be), there are 6 actions which qualify as DPI.
This case likely fell under either:
1) contact by a defender who is not playing the ball that keeps the intended receiver from making the catch
5) cutting off a potential receiver's path while making no effort to defend the ball.

The key element is that the defender did not look back at the ball and made no attempt himself to make a play at the ball to either intercept or knock it away.

I wasn't there, but all I can really see from the replay is some hand-checking (by both players), the defensive back throwing his hands in the air, and underthrown ball. I don't even see much body contact, if any. I'd also argue that the defender throwing his hands in the air is an attempt to "knock [the ball] away". But that is all judgement call stuff.

What I don't understand is the de-facto requirement in the NFL that the defender must be looking at the ball less he get charged with PI. The defender is watching his man, so how could he possibly know where the ball is, or even if it was thrown? Unless you expect defenders to somehow always be watching for thrown balls while keeping up with a receiver, I personally can't say how the defender could have played that better.

I'm getting over my head though, so I'll just close by saying that DPI on underthrown balls seems very cheap.

Partisan: What I don't understand is the de-facto requirement in the NFL that the defender must be looking at the ball less he get charged with PI. The defender is watching his man, so how could he possibly know where the ball is, or even if it was thrown? Unless you expect defenders to somehow always be watching for thrown balls while keeping up with a receiver, I personally can't say how the defender could have played that better.

the "looking back" requirement is there to actually protect the defender. for a few years the rule was being called any time a defender touched the receiver while the ball was in the air, but defenders would argue "how can i have knowingly hit the guy or avoid contact and STILL look back to try and defend the pass?! if i look back, and he moves slightly, we'll bump and i'll get called, give me a break!" so they amended the rule basically to say that a defender is often times "off the hook" for the flag if he is looking back at the ball(it still gets called on egregious situations though).

as to "how can the defender know the ball is in the air?" that's an experience factor, experienced DBs can read the body language of the receiver and know when the ball is thrown. and it's not that uncommon, you'll often see a DB waving his arm at "just the right time" to knock the ball away when it appears there was no way he could have known the ball was there, because he knew the body language of the WR.

as for what is and is not DPI, that changes every week(and of course, due to every official being slightly different, and in a slightly different spot with different views, etc).

one standard was that a defender doesn't have to get out of the way of a receiver, for example. if DB is standing perfectly still, then WR has to go around him. yet in pit-ari, Larry Fitzgerald ran over a standing still ike taylor, and Ike got called for DPI. the following week, in Pit-NE, the patriots LB was allowed to stand still as the steelers TE ran into him in the endzone(outside the 5 yard "grey area") and the ref told Pit "he doesn't have to get out of the way".

/the above example wasn't a complaint, and Pit won both games, it was just an example from my own personal memory, and since the games i watch most involve the steelers, most examples involve their games.

Saith Tebow:

"The opposing receiver shall not be allowed to have that catch. So it is written, so shall it be done."

Y'know, usually Fark headlines are big bags o' hyperbole. Gotta admit though, this one might just be right. That was a heckuva catch.

Gotta love the retarded celebration followed by the dejected trudge back to the original line of scrimmage. Stay classy, Kansas City.

FriarReb98: And Dawkins, who wasn't even LOOKING for the ball, still tried to get a OPI on it.

Why must Broncos DB's be such dicks?

UMad!

Defensive PI is where on that play now?

I don't watch football anymore, but I saw the clip yesterday. That was almost certainly the most unbelievable catch I've ever seen. I guess I've also been away from the sport for too long, because the NFL now obviously cares so much about offensive production that they've resorted to calling anything pass interference. That's a dumb rule, and I was glad to see the penalty was offset on it. Also glad that it worked in Denver's favor, but it's a pity that a reception like that was for naught.

Came to see the Calvin catch.

/leaving dissapointed.

Krustofsky: Saith Tebow:

"The opposing receiver shall not be allowed to have that catch. So it is written, so shall it be done."

Yes my son, one day you wiil be king and you too will know...EVERYTHING.

Awesome catch. An Alabama receiver did this for a touchdown a couple years ago.

/Link (new window)

Proletariat In Charge: Awesome catch. An Alabama receiver did this for a touchdown a couple years ago.

/Link (new window)

Great find. Exactly the play I thought of when I saw the clip. Bama did it slightly better.