What game, incident or team inspired the NFL to adopt instant replay?
The day was Dec. 6, 1998 at the Meadowlands. The Seahawks stopped quarterback Vinny Testaverde of the New York Jets about half-yard shy of a touchdown.
Head linesman Earnie Frantz signaled TD. Referee Phil Luckett, without the benefit of instant replay that was seen by millions on TV, allowed the call to stand. Because of the play, the Seahawks lost 32-31. They would go on to win two of their final three games, but the 8-8 finish left them a game shy of making AFC West postseason. (Today that record seems majestic relative to their NFC West title. But that’s another story.)
After that season, the Seahawks fired head coach Dennis Erickson and replaced him with Mike Holmgren, who would take the Seahawks to the postseason six times in his 10 years, including a Super Bowl appearance following the 2005 season. But the error that took down the Seahawks and Erickson helped swing the NFL rules committee to adopt instant replay.
So if anyone complains to you about the cheapness of the Seahawks’ current entry into the playoffs, you may tell that ignorant fool that the NFL has owed one to Seattle for long time. And you don’t even need to get into Super Bowl XL.
2 Comments
I think the simple fact many of us (and especially those of us who have been linemen) have long known is that the Seahawks have only been good when they’ve had enough good-enough linemen, on both sides of the ball. Nothing else for starts or duration really matters as much for any playoff-bound team. Not high-draft QB’s, or LB’s, or receivers and safeties…but linemen.
Black people love to show off, it’s in their nature. That’s why they would rather wash there cars and put rims on them than fill up the tank and use a/c. That’s why you always see them pushing the car to the gas station. What do you call a town in USA filled with Asians? China town. What do you call a town in USA filled with Italians? Little Italy. What do you call a town in the USA filled with black people? The ghetto! It isn’t racism. It’s cold hard facts, get over it. Asians love rice, do they et mad when you tell them that…. Mexicans love tapatio and coronas/budlight, do they get mad when you tell them that? Whites love steak and potatoes, do they get mad if you tell them that… Now if you tell a black person they like chicken and lemonade. Watch out!!!