Matt Hasselbeck gets flagged for phantom false start (Video)
By Josh Hill
It’s just the preseason, but the referees are already in regular season screw up mode.
The NFL is trying to cut back on how a quarterback can draw someone offsides playing mimicking a silent count thus drawing the defense across the line. It’s a false start rule, and it should be — only when applied correctly.
Ed Hochuli used suspect judgement on Sunday afternoon in Philadelphia when he flagged Colts quarterback Matt Hasselbeck for a false start when it appeared he didn’t do anything wrong other than try to snap the ball.
Hasselbeck thought that the Eagles had been drawn offsides, but Ed Hochuli had a different way of seeing it.
You be the judge:
Mike Mayock is right in disagreeing with this — because it’s bogus. If you bob your head or make an obvious attempt to draw someone offsides, that should be a false start. But Hasselbeck didn’t really do that, yet he was flagged anyways.
Ed Hochuli is one of the best officials in the NFL, if not the best, but even he needs the preseason to shake off the cobwebs from the offseason.
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