Ben Austro over at Football Zebras did an awesome job of breaking down most of these, but here are some highlights:
Roger Goodell should invoke Rule 17
I’ve seen a ton of people saying Roger Goodell should use Rule 17 to replay part of the game (or maybe the entire thing). He can’t — that’s not how Rule 17 works.
A former Rams player was an official during the game
Phil McKinnely was indeed a Rams player in 1981, and he also played for the Bears and Falcons. He was typically on Vinovich’s crew, but wasn’t for this game.
Vinovich must have seen the play when it happened
This is one I hear a lot; after the game, referee Bill Vinovich said “I personally have not seen the play” and people were outraged. How could the referee have not seen that play? Well, because it’s not his job. You can argue that other officials saw the play and should have thrown a flag, but Vinovich has a responsibility in the backfield. If he had watched the play unfold, then you’d have a right be to upset because he wouldn’t be doing his job very well.
There’s quite a bit more to this, and I encourage you to check out Ben’s full post for lots of details.
