steelers@ravens winning touchdown

[sloth]

Originally Posted by Barcelona

It is a touchdown, when:
-ball in runner´s possession breaks a plane of goalline (this rule is used, when offense is running into the endzone. This wasn´t this case)
-there is a completed catch in the endzone (that´s the rule, that was used). When throwing a pass, all four boundary lines of the endzone are equal. Receiver can stand inside the endzone, can extend his arms beyond endline or sideline, and if he completes the catch (that means both feet down, firmly grasping the ball), it is a touchdown - no matter where the ball is - whether the ball is inside or outside the endzone. And the same rule applies, when it´s caugth across the goalline. Let say, endzone is a huge aquarium - if you extend your arms from the aquarium and you have your feet on "aquarium´s floor", it is a catch IN aquarium.
There were many many touchdowns like yesterday´s one. And it never was questionable.

Ref made poor announcement, but ruling was clear. During the game, when Holmes muffed a punt, ref for some unknown reason assured everybody, that receiving team can advance a punt. Also that announcement was strange...

What is really bad - all servers, NFL.com included, report about wild touchdown, etc. Is it really such a huge problem to call Perreira and say "Mike, you know, we and all the nation are so stupid, that we don´t know the rules, can you explain the rules for us"? And it is not necessary to call Perreira, even somebody with knowledge of rules can be asked...

I'm not going to speak too authorative on this as I'm not familiar with NFL interperations in this area, but I think that aquarium analogy is a bit flawed. The recievers feet and not the ball position doesn't matter in the back or side of the endzone because of the "goal line extended". The idea that the goal line does not stop at the out of bounds line and as long as the player is not out of bounds and the ball is over the extened goal line you have a touchdown. My understanding of the interperation is that you have to treat the front of the endzone different than the sides and back becasue of this principal.