Replacement officials were in action on Sunday for the first time in NFL history. A game-by-game look at what happened:
Game
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What happened
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Penalties/Yds
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Lions-Packers
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Referee Aster Sizemore never called out the number
of the player being penalized and there were two very late flags.
Bernardo Harris also recovered Batch's fumble and wasn't touched
before getting up and rumbling toward the end zone. He was ruled
down at the spot he recovered. "I can tell my buddies that I should have had a touchdown," Harris said. "They robbed me, but that doesn't matter."
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Detroit: 4 for 57 yds
Green Bay: 4 for 35 yds
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Colts-Jets
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There were no controversies.
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Indianapolis: 2 for 10 yds
N.Y. Jets: 3 for 30 yds
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Steelers-Jaguars
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Officials had little impact, calling
three valid unsportsmanlike-conduct penalties and not much else.
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Pittsburgh: 4 for 29 yds
Jacksonville: 4 for 31 yds
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Saints-Bills
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Officials were a small factor. They missed what appeared to be Ruben Brown's illegal block on a
Saints defender that opened the hole on Peerless Price 31-yard gain
off a reverse. The officials also had trouble marching off penalties, twice
winding up a yard short.
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New Orleans: 4 for 35 yds
Buffalo: 4 for 35 yds
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Patriots-Bengals
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Bengals coach Dick LeBeau challenged an 8-yard touchdown pass to New England's Jermaine Wiggins that cut it to 23-17 with 5:29 left, arguing that he was down before the goal line. Referee John Smith found the replay
inconclusive. Smith also decided to review a 15-yard, third-down completion by Bledsoe with 1:23 left on New England's final possession deep in its territory, then ruled the ball was trapped.
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New England: 3 for 15 yds
Cincinnati: 3 for 20 yds
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Bucs-Cowboys
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No real problems. The biggest flub was flipping a coin even though President
Bush tossed the coin at the White House for the 10 early games. It
worked out fine, though, because their coin landed on tails, just
like Bush's.
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Tampa Bay: 6 for 61 yds
Dallas: 4 for 32 yds
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Panthers-Vikings
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Officials were consistently slow in making calls and
marking the spot of the ball. Before one play in the first quarter,
referee Wayne McKreight had to run to the sideline and ask someone
what down it was. Alos, Mitch Berger's punt bounced near midfield and caused a slight
mixup midway through the first quarter when Carolina let it go. It glanced
off Minnesota's Harold Morrow, which made the ball dead, but
touched a Panthers player and the Vikings jumped on it. Officials
signaled Minnesota had recovered but realized the error and
reversed the call.
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Carolina: 7 for 57 yds
Minnesota: 7 for 40 yds
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Raiders-Chiefs
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A controversial decision late in the first half hurt the Raiders. Charlie Garner made
a great catch near the sideline as Jerome Woods slammed him out of
bounds on a play that was first ruled a 27-yard gain. But the call was reversed upon review when referee Randall
Beesley decided the tackle did not cause both of Garner's feet to
go out of bounds. A furious Tim Brown then drew a 15-yard
unsportsmanlike penalty, all of which resulted in the Raiders
having third-and-17 from their own 46 instead of first-and-10 from
the Kansas City 12, and helped the Chiefs take a 14-6 lead into
halftime. |
Oakland: 10 for 106 yds
Kansas City: 4 for 25 yds
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Seahawks-Browns
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The officials had little trouble in the 9-6 game. |
Seattle: 1 for 5 yds
Cleveland: 4 for 43 yds
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Bears-Ravens
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In the second quarter, referee Joseph
Rider left his microphone on for three plays, shutting it down only
when attempting to announce two penalties. But the officials -- five who went to college in Illinois -- had little impact on the game. "I think the answer I'm supposed to give, for the purposes of
fines, is that they did OK," said Chicago cornerback R.W.
McQuarters.
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Chicago: 5 for 56 yds
Baltimore: 6 for 55 yds
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Rams-Eagles
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The first of two Eagles touchdowns in the fourth quarter came on a reversed call. Cecil Martin was stopped short of the end zone. But referee Al Hynes
ruled the ball crossed the goal after watching the replay. The replay showed the play was extremely
close, but the Rams' win made it moot.
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St. Louis: 7 for 45 yds
Philadelphia: 2 dor 20 yds
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Falcons-49ers
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Falcons coach Dan Reeves thought the replacement officials were too quick with a whistle on the 49ers' game-winning drive in overtime. One play after Tai Streets made a 52-yard reception to put San Francisco in field goal range, Garrison Hearst was stopped on a 2-yard rush up the middle. Officials whistled the play dead, but
Atlanta defensive lineman Patrick Kerney popped out of the tackle with the ball. The Falcons insisted it was a fumble, but such a play is not reviewable by instant replay.
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Atlanta: 3 for 25 yds
San Francisco: 6 for 60 yds
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Redskins-Chargers
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The officials had little trouble in this victory by the Chargers. |
Washington: 6 for 69 yds
San Diego: 5 for 49 yds
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Dolphins-Titans
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Not even a helping hand from the replacement officials could make a difference for the Titans. Chris Sanders had his hands on Dolphins cornerback Patrick
Surtain's head and shoulder on a pass down the sideline, but the officials called defensive pass interference for a 34-yard gain on the penalty. Still, Miami forced the Titans to punt.
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Miami: 6 for 128 yds
Tennessee: 12 for 77 yds
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