At a homecoming rally at Qwest Field in Seattle, one fan held up a sign that sums up how most of the Seahawk faithful must feel in the wake of Super Bowl XL. It read, "Refs are chumps."
During the rally, Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren stated that he "knew it was going to be tough going up against the Pittsburgh Steelers. I didn't know we were going to have to play the guys in the striped shirts as well."
All this griping and complaining won't move the Lombardi Trophy to the Pacific Northwest, but Holmgren and Co. have a valid point.
Early in the game, a questionable offensive pass-interference call on Seattle wide receiver Darrell Jackson erased a Seahawk touchdown. The call by back judge Bob Waggoner forced Seattle to settle for a field goal instead of seven.
Late in the first half, Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger ran for a one-yard touchdown on third down that was upheld after an official's review. However, on Monday night's "Late Show," Roethlisberger told David Letterman, "I don't think I got in."
The backbreaker for Seahawks fans came in the final quarter when an 18-yard completion to the one-yard line was erased by an imaginary holding call on guard Sean Locklear. Seahawk quarterback Matt Hasselbeck threw an interception on the next play and (to add insult to injury) was called for an illegal block in the back as he was making the tackle.
What if Jackson wasn't called for pass interference, Roethlisberger was ruled down at the one-yard line, and Locklear wasn't called for holding? The score might have been very different. But instead, according to one Seattle fan the final score was "Refs 21, Hawks 10."
This was a trend in the NFL playoffs this season, from Champ Bailey's goal- line fumble, officials allowing a "do over" after players from the Colts and Steelers both jumped across the neutral zone, to Troy Polamalu's interception getting overturned (which, thankfully, the NFL apologized for).
Could you imagine a referee calling an offensive foul when Michael Jordan hit the series-clinching jump shot against the Utah Jazz in the 1998 NBA Finals? How about if the whistle blew after Franco Harris caught the "Immaculate Reception?" Even Dwight Clark admits that his reception in the back of the end zone was a designed pick play, but the refs kept the flags in their pocket.
They should have done just that on Sunday.
Reach the reporter at thomas.j.kelley@asu.edu.
