by Kevin Hench

Comment

We learned that the refs don't know the rules. And neither does Donovan McNabb. We learned Browns GM Phil Savage is a concise pen pal. We learned that the Bengals actually have team rules. And we learned that Tony Romo has more human decency in his broken pinky than some guys have in an entire garbage bag filled with money.

These are the Sundays of Our Lives.

Blown Call, Blown Cover

Perhaps NFL referees need more help at their disposal. Because super slo-mo from every angle just isn't enough. These guys need lifelines.

Had referee Scott Green been able to poll the audience on the last play of the Steelers' 11-10 victory over the Chargers last Sunday -- that should have been a spread-covering 18-10 victory -- what percentage of CBS viewers would have voted for touchdown? 90 percent? 95 percent? 99 percent?

Everyone I watch football with knew it should have been a touchdown. Everyone you watch football with knew it should have been a touchdown. My mom, who will occasionally e-mail me questions about rule interpretations, knew it was a touchdown.

Only the officials, upon huddling, came up with a final answer that stunned everybody in its confounding ignorance.

There wasn't anything particularly confusing or controversial about the play. Philip Rivers took the snap in shotgun, took a couple of steps backward and dumped the ball to LaDainian Tomlinson. Tomlinson then flipped the ball to Chris Chambers whose desperate lateral hit the ground and was scooped up by Troy Polamalu and run in for a score.

The ruling on the field was TD, which Green correctly upheld before huddling with his crew. Upon even further review and consultation, however, Green overruled himself, stating that the play should have been blown dead because of an illegal forward pass. Huh?

Was that back judge Tim Donaghy arguing for the call to be overturned?

The postgame explanation was even more astonishing than the call.

"We didn't kill it on the field," Green said. "After (the) discussion we decided ... there was some confusion over which pass we were talking about and it was decided that it was the second pass that was illegal that did hit the ground and therefore we killed the play there."

But the only pass that hit the ground -- Chambers' lateral -- clearly traveled backwards.

"I know," Green said. "The rule was misinterpreted."

No, the rule wasn't "misinterpreted." An easy call was blown in spectacular fashion.

One might almost suspect the officials of some shenanigans. But it's not like the Steelers were called for 13 penalties to the Chargers one. Oh, wait ...

You OTta Know

While I respect my colleague Jason Whitlock's defense of Donovan McNabb's ignorance of the NFL's OT rule, I have to side with the haters who have been hammering the QB this week.

This is my litmus test. If someone in the group of guys I watch football with every Sunday didn't know that NFL games are declared ties after 15 minutes of overtime, we'd murder him. It would be merciless. And we'd needle him about it for the next decade every time a game went into OT.

So, yes, a five-time Pro Bowl quarterback deserves his pillorying for not knowing a rule that's been in effect for his entire life.

But McNabb's ignorance wasn't unprecedented.

In 2002, the Steelers blew a 17-point fourth-quarter lead against the Falcons at Heinz Field in 2002 and had played a scoreless overtime when Plaxico Burress was tackled at the one on OT's final play.

Steelers linebacker James Farrior was jumping around, trying to get the crowd pumped up for the sixth quarter when the Black and Gold would easily punch it in from the 1-yard line.

My buddy Shek, a very depressed Steelers fan at that moment, noticed Farrior's demeanor right away and said something to the effect of "that idiot doesn't know the game's over."

McNabb obviously didn't see that game. I get it, he was working, losing 35-13 to the Colts. But didn't he catch any of the next 20 SportsCenters after that Steelers-Falcons tie?

Or how about during McNabb's junior year at Syracuse when then-Skins QB Gus Frerotte had the famous self-inflicted neck injury in a 7-7 tie against the Giants? Surely McNabb at least saw highlights of that game.

We don't expect athletes to be steeped in the history of the game, but it is completely amazing that a veteran quarterback could not know that NFL games are declared ties after a scoreless overtime period.

It's almost as incredible as not being able to score on the Bengals on six straight possessions.

Savage in Limbo

It's been a very odd year for Browns GM Phil Savage.

Cleveland was supposed to be a contender, save for the little problem of entering the season without a single proven cornerback.

But DB proved to be less of a problem than D.A. as newly extended Derek Anderson (3 years, $24M) led the Browns to an 0-3 start in which they scored 10, 6 and 10 points.

Then came Savage's dustup with Kellen Winslow over the team's treatment of the tight end during his bout with a staph infection (the team's sixth in the last few years).

Now, as the Browns appear to be turning a corner with Brady Quinn, comes word that Savage is actually responding to fan criticism sent to his team e-mail address with short, pithy profane rejoinders.

So to sum up: In 2008, Savage has guaranteed $13M to a player who is now his backup quarterback, alienated his all-world tight end and now has had to apologize for dropping an F-bomb on a fan in an e-mail.

Cleveland owner Randy Lerner must be thrilled to have Savage signed through 2012.

Sloucho Cinco

Marvin Lewis won't confirm that the trouble began when Chad Ocho Cinco was slouching in his chair during a team meeting, but there's no denying what a slouch the wide receiver has become on the field.

And it seems curious that the Bengals would finally decide to discipline Ocho Cinco only when it had become obvious that his presence on the field no longer improves their chances of winning football games.

Because no matter his me-first shenanigans -- and the 15-yard penalties that ensued -- Marvin Lewis refused to discipline him so long as he could get open deep. For the five-season stretch from 2003-2007, Ocho Cinco averaged 92.4 catches, 1,374 yards and 8.4 touchdowns. And nothing he did or said merited a suspension.

But on Wednesday -- in the midst of a season in which he is averaging 9.3 yards per catch with a long of 22 -- he was suspended for Thursday's loss to the Steelers for violating team rules. Guess it's easy to be tough when a guy isn't producing and it doesn't really matter who Ryan Fitzgerald is bouncing the ball to.

It sounds like Ocho Cinco was a little groggy in that Wednesday meeting. After watching Lewis decide to kick a field goal inside the 10 trailing 20-7 with 6:50 left on Thursday night against the Steelers one wonders if the coach is falling asleep during games.

Citizen Romo

What are the odds that a guy could burnish his rep as a role model by taking a homeless guy to a movie called Role Models?

Just 10 weeks after helping a couple of stranded motorists patch a flat, Tony Romo bought a movie ticket for a homeless guy who goes by "Doc" and invited him to sit with the star QB and his friend.

Your move, Pacman.