"Play"

[M&M Guy]

Originally posted by Jurassic Referee
I've been wrong before though, so I'll await enlightenment.

We've been awaiting your enlightenment for years...

However, I agree with you. There is a comment about blowing the whistle after an undue delay of some sort, but there is no whistle or spoken mechanic for starting a normal OOB play. It is exactly like the tipped (foul) ball signal. Just because you see several people use it doesn't mean its acceptable. As officials we need to be as uniform and consistent as possible, because that is our communication. The communication needs to be the same in Philly, Dallas and Portland. It is not our job to bring the other team back from la-la land, if they aren't paying attention. If we do our job correctly, in the proper sequence, then we are in effect penalizing the one team that is ready when they're supposed to be, if the other team isn't ready.