SEATTLE _ There was some serious head scratching in the Seattle locker room after Sunday’s game against Arizona regarding two fourth-quarter calls by the officials that went against the Seahawks on the field and then were upheld on subsequent video reviews.
The first call negated the Seattle recovery of an apparent Cardinals fumble deep in Seahawks territory, and Arizona ended up kicking a field goal three plays later. The ruling also cost Seattle a timeout it could have used late in the game.
The second call turned an apparent Seattle incomplete pass, intended for wide receiver Doug Baldwin, into an Arizona interception and allowed the Cardinals to take possession with 1:56 to play in the game. Since the Seahawks had only one remaining timeout, the visitors were able to run one play (which resulted in a first down) and then take a knee three times to run out the clock in their 17-10 win at CenturyLink Field.
Televised replays seemed to indicate the Seahawks got robbed on both calls.
A pool reporter interviewed referee Scott Green after the game, and he said replays did not offer conclusive evidence to overturn either call. On the apparent fumble, he said, “we never got a shot that showed the status of his knee or any other part of his body being down.” As for the apparently incomplete pass, “again, we didn’t have indisputable evidence that (the ball) hit the ground.”
Given the uncertainty, Green said, “you go with the call that was made on the field.”
The Seahawks obviously felt differently.
Asked if the ball thrown to him hit the ground, Baldwin said, “I believe it did, and I don’t think anybody had a better view of it than me. I believe it hit the ground, but of course I’m biased. But I definitely thought it hit the ground.”
“I thought it hit the ground,” agreed quarterback Russell Wilson.
Said Seattle head coach Pete Carroll, “There’s some stuff that we certainly feel like griping about, but it isn’t going to do us any good, so we’re not going to.”
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