Unreal. I have, in my biased eyes, never seen a more poorly officiated game in my entire life. Especially in the playoffs, when its all or nothing. Off of the top of my head, I could name at least 5 bogus penalties that cost the Eagles the game. What makes it even worse is the fact that the Saints expected the calls to be made.
Case in point: 3rd and 11, Eagles final possession. Garcia is rushed but is able to get the pass off in time and completes it for a first down (or so I thought). Nope. False start. Do you know what usually happens when there is a false start? THE PLAY IS BLOWN DEAD IMMEDIATELY. Nope, this crew (who, by the way, made similar calls when we played Dallas on Christmas) decided to let the play run, see if the Eagles made the first down, and then decide to penalize them.
And there were some totally, totally bogus holding calls that really impaired numerous drives. Yes, I am whining, and deservedly so. I hate losing, I do (whether it's in a sport I'm playing or a team that I'm following). I dont mind losing to a team who is better prepared or who out plays us or dominates us to earn the W. I do mind, however, referees who have a bigger hand in the game than the players do.
The NFL is rigged. They got what they wanted, the "feel good story" of the Saints moving on to the NFC Championship. Now every jerk journalist can write how this victory really helped to rebuild New Orleans. The'll make accusations that a football team actually matters to people who lost everything in a natural disaster. NEWS FLASH: If I lost everything I owned, everything I worked for, and even a member of my family to a natural disaster such as Katrina, the last thing I would care about is a football game. I cant wait to see how many ESPN articles are written from that point of view this week. The NFL, the NO FUN LEAGUE.