Worst case scenario is there would have had to have been an un-timed free kick. Line up and try and onside kick, ballgame. I find it fascinating that Harbaugh is being called a "genius" for something so simple. Coaches in the CFL do the "give up a safety to get better field position because of the free kick" thing all the time. It's sound football strategy. So many bad things can happen on a punt, giving up 2 points and being able to flip the field on your terms seems like a no brainer to me. On the hold: calling it the "worst non call. ever" is a LITTLE bit of hyperbole. I saw Cam Wake get held worse than that at least 20 times this year. It happens a dozen times a game. The NFL does not like to call holding, they want offense.
Lol, I'm lost. It's too late to be debating this. Congrats to Baltimore. Hopefully it's us next year!
How were they hosed? I feel like you don't know how the game is played. If holding gets called, THE EXACT SAME SAFETY RESULT IS called. I don't know what you think changes. Perhaps you started watching football tonight?
Only 2 options huh? So when you overload the outside and leave a big opening in the middle where all the Baltimore blockers are, the punter can't run up the middle for an uncontested first down upon John's request <after he first called a timeout when you showed him the overloaded perimeter>? What about a blocked kick opportunity if there happened to be a punt? If San Fran floods the outside and Balt punts it, they just lost a shot at a blocked kick/TD.
If the niners lined up that way, the punter would have to scramble a good 15yds for the first. Now THAT would have been something. Patrick Willis can run from One sideline to the other and back again before a punter can get 15 yards. (I'm exaggerating, but you get what I'm saying) even if it's the grand canyon, no way do they call that. As for the block? Well yeah, you can't have your cake and eat it too. It was a win win for the ravens. There was very little to go wrong for them
Exactly, which is why Balt can be encouraged to hold so blatantly to begin with- b/c the longer they hold the worse it screws the Niners. You just agreed with me and you don't even realize it, that is, unless you think holding should benefit the offense.
I'm hoping you've never complained about Wake being held nor do so in the future b/c that would make your posts seem a little hypocritical at the moment.
Sorry, I do find it funny you guys complain all year about Wake being held but exhibit a different attitude when the holding screws over someone else.
I never once said the ravens didn't hold on the play. They did. It doesn't matter that they did. That's why it was so smart. If wake gets held in the end zone and the other team takes a safety, I will never complain. Not that this particular tactic would work on wake, he would just think it was any other play and break away from it anyway
and why was there a hold? b/c it's encouraged. Why was it encouraged? b/c it could do nothing but benefit the team doing the holding There's an inherent problem with the rules in this regard that give an unfair advantage to the offense. Do you agree or not?
Overload blitz, get a man free via formation. Having someone come from wide. As long as you have one guy deep, and enough on the line to stop an extremely unlikely fake, the sky's the limit on where you bring pressure from. They lined up for a strait punt block.
what's that gotta do with stopping being held? The 2 guys in the first pic look like they've beaten their respective blocker and would be "free" if not for being held for 5 seconds.
Conceding the point that it was not in fact the worst non-call ever, that it was in fact a good non-call, as the call would have been pointless.
you can't. That's part of the point. It's a big screw up in the rules. The rule should've already been amended so that an offense can't be rewarded for committing a penalty. Like I said, if an offensive hold occurs during a safety <inside 2 minutes>, the opposing team should have the choice between either accepting 10 yards on the ensuing punt/kick or having the clock reset to what it was when the play began. If the rules can enforce a 10 second runoff for a different penalty, and if they can alter the time after a play when the **** runs too long, then they can certainly rewind the time to when the play began.
I'm not conceding crap, nor did I infer that... and your nuts if you think it's a good non-call. The only way it could've been worse is if Ed Dickson dropped his pants and introduced his Dickson. A blatant hold is a hold is a hold. It should be called regardless b/c that's the rule. If you rape a player on the field, you get flagged for it.
Okay, so maybe "good" is too strong of a word. But, are you really making the case that the worst non-call ever had no affect on the outcome of a game? The worst ever.
Not reading this silly thread. Kluwe explained on his Twitter that it wouldn't have mattered. On the 4th and goal a case could be made but ball was uncatchable. The better team won.
Yes, it's one of the worst non-called holds I've ever seen. Watch the replay. 5 to 6 seconds he's held for. So basically, if Baltimore were instead trailing the game, there would've been a 10 second runoff penalty discouraging them from any attempt at skirting the system to stop/manipulate the clock, but when they have a lead they can hold defenders as long as possible to manipulate the clock w/o recourse.
Kluwe explained the safety holding. It was brought up in the game that the 4th and goal was uncatchable.
Blatant hold. Would it have made a difference? Doubtful. Is someone being absolutely ridiculous? Yes. Is comparing it to the times Wake gets held dumb? Undoubtly
Listen, if you so wanted to see the game end in a hail mary, then you should have called the 49ers and told Ginn to take a knee right when he caught the ball to stop the clock. The Ravens beat the 49ers within the rules, was it a hold? sure was. Every hold still allows time off the clock, this one took time off clock and gave the 49ers 2 points. If the refs called the hold, it would have been put on the free kick. Still wouldn't have changed game, since you dont see many free kicks returned for TD's. Deal with the fact that it came down to a Coach using what tools he was left with to win the game. That is smart coaching.
They deserved to lose for calling the Hartline special on 4th and Goal. End zone fades are the worst.
Eli Manning and Plaxico Burress beat the Patriots with an end zone fade. I will always love that call for that reason.
Depends on personal. Fade to Randy Moss? Calvin Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald? OK. Fade to Crab? Fade to Hartline? Eh...
And the ravens returned that kick for a TD. Had they gone down there would have been a few seconds for a 75 yard hair Mary. One crucial piece being overlooked is the new rules in regards to a time burn off the clock. Would that have applied had the holding been called and not in the end zone and the Niners didn't have a timeout to trade for it?
