I've been thinking about this (after sleeping on it basically) and I have a few things to ask.
-I kept reading here last night that this call couldn't be reviewed, and people seemed to have an issue with the fact that it was reviewed. Well, I thought all scoring plays this season were reviewable, so it seemed legit to me. Also, since when was it an official rule that you had to kick the extra point for the touchdown to count. I always thought if you score a touchdown and it's the end of the game, than you don't need to kick the PAT. Before the PAT, it was 13-12, so that's game over right? In OT, if you score a TD, the game is over and you don't have to kick. I was very confused with both those aspects.
-I've always said (And feel like I've been consistent with this fact) that the Referees themselves have been treated like second class citizans by pretty much everyone because they are replacements. It's kind of like when you have a Substitute teacher and the students take advantage of him/her because they know they can get away with it. I actually thought before the 4th quarter is was a decently officiated game. Yeah they were flag happy, but it seemed like a lot of those calls were legit calls. It was the 4th quarter where these guys had major issues with the PIs or roughing the passer. I really was hoping to give these guys some credit last night and then the 4th quarter happened and I couldn't. It's really a shame that these guys are in this position because they might be good referees in their respective leagues but the NFL is an entirely different animal. Also, the replay booth guys are not replacements and they seem to be getting a free pass. Why aren't they being grilled today for what happened. Why Aren't they having a press conference a la Jim Joyce and apologizing publicly for this?
I was listening to the JT The Brick show last night and there was a caller who pretty much said something that I really agree with. He said, don't blame the Refs themselves, blame the NFL and owners. They knew this Lockout was coming and they didn't force a hand by bringing in these guys and giving them proper training. You had the Super Bowl end in February, and there was no contingency plan in case the lockout happened, which it ended up happening in June. It was a very strong argument, and it's pretty much how I feel. I don't blame the refs themselves. I blame Roger Godell, the RFA, and the NFL for this mess.
Unfortunately, much like Hockey, I'm still a fan and I'm still going to watch. I don't buy any NFL products anyway, but everyone's saying we as fans need to Boycott the NFL. You can't boycott the NFL, not if you're a fan of football. Are you just going to say when you're favorite team is playing that you won't watch? I am planning a trip to Reno in November and I probably won't place a bet on the NFL though. That might actually go to betting on the NBA, as they might be the only legit and stable league going at the time, believe it or not.
Still, this whole thing is a freaking mess. I hope something is done, and soon because the integrity of the game is lost. This isn't the NFL I know and love, and god if this happened in the playoffs or Super Bowl, there might be riots. I can tell you one thing though. If we still have replacement refs on Super Bowl Sunday, that game might be like 6 hours long.
I do wonder how this would have gone down if the regular officials had been out there anyway. They miss calls all the time and I still think the thing/play would have been a mess.