Holding, #21 Kicking Team Penalty Enforced At the Spot of the Foul

[Patler]

My question is this: Was Knox lined up on the sideline the whole time, like he was sneaking off the field or something? Or did he fade over there after the snap?

Knox sprinted down to that corner from his position up on the line against Bush. If you watch the original angle that was from behind Masthay, you can see him release and sprint down the sideline. You can also see the hold of Bush. It comes into the screen on the left just as Masthay gets the punt away. From the still shot sequence on JSO, it looks like #21 actually hooked the collar of Bush's shoulder pads from behind and pulled his shoulder backward. Bush's upper body twists backward even though his is past the blocker. It was probably pretty evident to the official.

[Bossman641]

McCarthy blamed poor awareness on the coverage unit as a culprit. So rather than Masthay simply yelling "LEFT LEFT!" over and over, it would seem they are supposed to track the ball or other return bodies somewhere along the line.

My question is this: Was Knox lined up on the sideline the whole time, like he was sneaking off the field or something? Or did he fade over there after the snap?

Knox was lined up with Graham over Bush. If you watch this replay you can see him sprinting down the sideline. He makes a pretty nice over the shoulder grab too. It looks like Masthay hit a real nice punt, it was right near the sideline.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T5cYwx2WuE

[pbmax]

Best explanation so far:

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcnorth/post/_/id/31738/31738

Bush:

"We all went with Hester," Bush said. "You have to kind of respect it because Hester is the dynamic returner that he is. Everybody went that way. I knew the ball was supposed to go a different way. But I couldn't find it."

[Fritz]

Shawn Slocum is the new Kurt Schottenheimer.

[TravisWilliams23]

Aikman said Hester called for a "fair catch" but I didn't see anywhere on the replay where he actually raised his hand to signal for such. I'm not 100% sure but I think if anyone signals for a fair catch the ball can't be returned. I know for sure the player signaling can NOT advance the punt.
I've read numerous complaints about the hold and how the ref's blew it, yada yada yada but #21 did grab Bush and a referee saw it and threw the flag. Sad part for the Bears is that Bush had no idea where the ball was going and was going for Hester too.
Bears "almost" pulled off one of the greatest trick plays of all time but it's now just a water cooler conversation piece.
Shame on the Packers ST and coaches. Even though it was brought back, it's a total embarrassment for them to have fallen for the gig.

[pbmax]

McCarthy PC:

Grant kidney bruise
Jones hamstring strain
Bulaga knee bruise (medical staff more concerned than Bulaga) its Newhouse for now
Marshall good solid game, some tech to correct
Bears tried something similar on earlier punt but Packers downed ball near endzone, some coverage issues but mainly great design and execution
Sherrod will get more reps and McCarthy is pleased with his development
Nickel D playing the run very well esp. Matthews, Walden and DTs
Peprah needs to keep feet, Burnett played well and he and Wynn won game balls

[red]

McCarthy blamed poor awareness on the coverage unit as a culprit. So rather than Masthay simply yelling "LEFT LEFT!" over and over, it would seem they are supposed to track the ball or other return bodies somewhere along the line.

My question is this: Was Knox lined up on the sideline the whole time, like he was sneaking off the field or something? Or did he fade over there after the snap?

knox was lined up on bush, he was one of the two guys that were suppose to harass the gunner. right before the snap he turned around and started sprinting down the side line. bush didn't pick up on this

knox said the bears knew where the punt was going to go based on where the packers were and what hash they were on.

so the bears knew where we were punting, but we didn't

[pbmax]

Grant is a runner who gets better with attempts and excels going North/South
McKenzie says they dodged a bullet with Bulaga
but won't know more until all scans are in

M3 not too happy about 15 pre snap penalties in last two regular season games in Soldier Field

[pbmax]

knox was lined up on bush, he was one of the two guys that were suppose to harass the gunner. right before the snap he turned around and started sprinting down the side line. bush didn't pick up on this

knox said the bears knew where the punt was going to go based on where the packers were and what hash they were on.

so the bears knew where we were punting, but we didn't

That works, only if you have Hester as your return man, I would imagine.

[Guiness]

McCarthy PC:
Burnett played well and he and Wynn won game balls

And what about Wynn??? Certainly developing better than most thought he would. We'd all be bitching a LOT more about the DL, Neale being out and Jenkins gone if this guy hadn't stepped up the way he has. I haven't paid enough attention - how is he holding up in the run game?

[Lurker64]

The number of Bears fans who complained about the "phantom holding" today was pretty funny.

Even if the call was illegitimate (despite Aikman and Buck, it wasn't) the call would only have changed the game if:
- The Bears recover the ensuing onside kick.
- The Bears are able to kick a score a touchdown after recovering the onside kick
-OR-
-The Bears are able to kick a field goal after recovering the onside kick
-AND-
-The Bears manage to score first in overtime.

The call wasn't missed, it's just funny the number of Bears fans who think that it mattered for some reason. Maybe it makes them feel better to lose by 3?

[Freak Out]

I thought Grant won a game ball? How many do they give out per game?

[Lurker64]

I thought Grant won a game ball? How many do they give out per game?

I think they give out 1-2 game balls for each unit (offense, defense, special teams).

[Joemailman]

The number of Bears fans who complained about the "phantom holding" today was pretty funny.

Even if the call was illegitimate (despite Aikman and Buck, it wasn't) the call would only have changed the game if:
- The Bears recover the ensuing onside kick.
- The Bears are able to kick a score a touchdown after recovering the onside kick
-OR-
-The Bears are able to kick a field goal after recovering the onside kick
-AND-
-The Bears manage to score first in overtime.

The call wasn't missed, it's just funny the number of Bears fans who think that it mattered for some reason. Maybe it makes them feel better to lose by 3?

Wasn't the point spread 3.5?

[Iron Mike]

The number of Bears fans who complained about the "phantom holding" today was pretty funny.

Maybe eventually this will be another "asterisk" game for Chicago.....

[gbgary]

Maybe eventually this will be another "asterisk" game for Chicago.....

hehe

[Brando19]

Thank you for finding that image, pbmax. The guys at work were saying it was a bullshit call and should have counted and were riding me all day. Now I have evidence. I can't wait for work tomorrow to prove them sorry bastards wrong.

[swede]

Not that evidence matters to a Bear fan. They just move on to the next excuse.

[Iron Mike]

the play called for mashtay to kick to the left sideline, the whole special teams knew he was kicking that was, yet every single one of them went to the right in one giant mass

it was an awesome play by the bears, but i think our ST should feel pretty stupid too

no staying home, no staying in your lanes. if hester had gotten the ball, the whole opposite side of the field was wide open for him

here's the video

http://www.nfl.com/videos/chicago-be...that-never-was

Take a look again at the video at 0:13........does #49 of the Bears not shove Masthay in the back during the return?? Would that NOT be an illegal block in the back?? Just askin'.

[Patler]

Thank you for finding that image, pbmax. The guys at work were saying it was a bullshit call and should have counted and were riding me all day. Now I have evidence. I can't wait for work tomorrow to prove them sorry bastards wrong.

If you need proof, how about an admission from Graham that he did it:

Graham was stunned.

"It's unfortunate that something we worked so hard on would be called back because of a play by me," he said. "It was maybe 30, 40 yards away from the play. It wasn't blatant but it was just a bad play by me. I should have just let him go, just don't even touch him. He had nothing to do with the play.

"It worked just the way we planned on it."