Let’s get one thing straight here. An early whistle probably won’t end up costing the San Diego Chargers their 2008 season, and it certainly isn’t a major factor in the Seattle Seahawks’ inconceivable 1-5 start.
Cost them a game? Maybe, maybe not. But certainly not the season.
But premature whistles have now affected the course of two of the seven games played on Sunday Night Football. That’s not only unfortunate, but also a reason to take a look at the rule.
The way NFL rules dictate, a play is dead whenever the whistle blows. Anything that happens thereafter is as pointless as an original thought from an Oakland Raiders coach.
It seems that things shouldn’t be so cut-and-dry. It seems like there should be a way to correct a premature whistle and let the play conclude.
The gaffe in the Chargers game brought much more publicity because of its timing. Late in a seven-point game, Denver Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler dropped back and lost the ball as he tried to throw a pass, resulting in what should have been ruled as a fumble. The Chargers picked up the ball and could have clinched the game, but official Ed Hochuli had inadvertently blown the play dead because he initially thought Cutler had thrown an incomplete pass.
The Broncos got the ball back, tied the score a few seconds later, and eventually won the game. A few days later, Hochuli issued several public apologies for his gaffe.
A whistle in Sunday’s Seahawks game was almost as costly (although the ineptitude of Seattle’s offense throughout the course of that game leads us to believe that the Buccaneers were going to win regardless).
Cornerback Josh Wilson scooped up a loose football after teammate Leroy Hill had drilled Bucs receiver Ike Hilliard and knocked the ball loose. Back judge Jim Howey immediately blew his whistle, believing that Hilliard’s knee touched the ground before the ball came loose. His whistle killed the play dead, so the fact that Wilson was running with the ball and a clear path to the end zone was a moot one.
Earlier this week, Seahawks middle linebacker Lofa Tatupu pointed out that the whistle, which was made in the first quarter of a game Seattle trailed 7-0, cost his team a touchdown and momentum.
“Had the whistle not blown on that fumble, it’s a 7-7 ball game,” Tatupu said earlier this week. “They only won 20-10. You can’t tell me that wouldn’t have changed the way the game went.”
He wasn’t the only Seahawk who was still miffed about the play this week.
Hill said Wilson would have definitely scored on the play, with a clear path to the end zone and Bucs quarterback Jeff Garcia as the only player in pursuit.
“It was Josh and Jeff Garcia,” Hill said Wednesday. “I’d put my money on Josh.”
Safety Deon Grant was also still seething.
“It’s sad when that happens,” he said. “You can’t make a call like that that can change the whole game. Something needs to be done because it’s not fair at all.”
The question is how to fix it. Letting a play go on after the whistle would be a safety hazard. Not blowing the whistle at all would create some confusion
Hill suggested that, on all plays that include a loose ball, the whistle not be blown until it is recovered and advanced.
“I think they should let the play go on,” Hill said. “You can always overturn the (return) touchdown. Don’t take the touchdown away from the players.”
Last Sunday’s inadvertent whistle probably wouldn’t have changed the course of Seattle’s season, but it would have let the players decide the outcome. And that’s what is most important in the end.
Scott M. Johnson is The Herald’s pro football writer
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