NFL Replay follies

Once again, the NFL replay system proves itself to be something less than dependable. The Ravens challenged the spot on that fake field goal in the fourth quarter, but the referees announced that they were challenging whether the ball was actually caught, which was obvious to all. When they came out from under the awning, they covered up nicely, claiming the ball was caught and that the receiver would have gotten the first down if not for the five-yard motion penalty that gave the Patriots another shot at the field goal. It looked like the Ravens stopped the play short of the first down, which would have allowed them to decline the penalty and take the ball trailling by only a field goal. Maybe the replay showed that they didn't, but they botched the whole affair so badly that there was no reason for anyone to be confident that they might get the final call right. To add insult to injury, after the replay was denied, the referees gave Willis McGahee a very stingy spot on t...