Packers vs Seahawks: Real Referees Biggest Winners in Monday Night Debacle

The Monday night game between the Green Bay Packers and the Seattle Seahawks was a travesty for the image of the NFL.

Had the replacement refs not already displayed a gross collective display of officiating prior to the interception that was ruled as a game-winning touchdown catch, there would be a public outcry that the fix was in for this game.

So the NFL has that going for them—but not much else. 

The real NFL referees had to be dancing the jig as this debacle unfolded. The ref's bargaining power received a huge boost from that insane mess of an ending. 

In case you haven't seen it. Here you go. 

The miss is so blatant that it barely deserves dissecting, but let's give it a shot anyway.

First off, how about Golden Tate's mugging of Sam Shields? While referees generally allow for some jostling on Hail Mary passes, this was beyond that.

Shoot, that bordered on the edge of unnecessary roughness. And it all was right in front of the ref! The same ref that blew the touchdown call, mind you, and how he missed that one is beyond me. 

M.D. Jennings went up to reach the ball at his highest point. He pulled it into his chest and fell to the ground in a pile of players.

Meanwhile, Tate was simply wrapped around Jennings' arm and the ball, but he is behind him! It is as clear as day—at least it was to one ref who waived his arms to signal touchback.  

The other ref whiffed badly on the call, and the ruling on the field was a touchdown. There was hope that replay would overturn it, but replay could not save the day.

Then things got even uglier. 

As the Orlando Sentinel noted, 27-year retired NFL referee and current ESPN NFL analyst Gerry Austin said during the broadcast, "They cannot, in replay, determine who has possession of the ball." 

So at least this would save the refs and the league from the embarrassment of having to admit that this play was reviewed in slow motion and from different angles, and it was still blown.

However, that was not to be.  

"They both possessed it," Wayne Elliott, the referee who looked at the replay, told reporters after the game. The Associated Press caught the quote, and also points out that he actually told reporters that replay confirmed what everyone knows was unconfirmable. 

They missed it on the replay, too! How does this happen? 

This outcome was a joke to all who watched it. It goes beyond any blown call to determine a game that I have ever witnessed, and the impact of this twisted outcome could be felt come playoff time.

There is a very real chance that the Seahawks and Packers could wind up battling for playoff positioning or the chance to get in the playoffs at all. 

Can you imagine if Green Bay loses out on the last wild-card spot to Seattle because of this game? The playoffs will have to be played with an asterisk. 

And the cruel, unavoidable reality is that the longer the replacement refs are on the field, the more likely it is that games will be decided by their blunders. 

The NFL, a.k.a Roger Goodell and the owners, love to preach about the "integrity of the shield," yet they have apparently not made enough concessions in their negotiations with the referees to ensure a product goes on the field that doesn't damage their brand. 

While ratings and interest will remain through the roof, there is no doubt that the integrity of the league took a hit with the farce that is the Seahawks' win.

The league cannot leave the door open for further hits to its image as damaging as this one. 

Not only does it chip away at the core of the NFL's brand, but it puts the league in an increasingly weak bargaining position. 

It is well past time to get the real referees back on the field.