Oct 5, 2008 9:16 pm US/Eastern
Ravens Misfortune: One Penalty Trumps Another
BALTIMORE (AP) ―
Why was the critical play in the Baltimore Ravens' 13-10 loss to unbeaten Tennessee Sunday -- a personal foul call against linebacker Terrell Suggs -- not whistled dead before the infraction because of a false start against the Titans?
Referee Bill Carollo's decision to let Suggs' contact with Titans quarterback Kerry Collins' helmet supersede premature movement by Tennessee offensive tackle Michael Roos wasn't a judgment call. It was the correct interpretation of a rule meant to protect quarterbacks and levy serious consequences for such conduct, Carollo said.
"A 15-yard penalty, coupled with a false start -- it's called a 5-and-15, which means the 5-yard penalty is ignored and only the 15-yard penalty is enforced," Carollo explained.
The sequence occurred with 5:57 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Ravens nursing a 10-6 lead and the Titans facing a third-and-10 from their own 20-yard line.
Most players ignored the whistle meant to halt the play, and an onrushing Suggs' right arm grazed the side of Collins' helmet on an incomplete pass intended for Justin McCareins.
After the game, Collins didn't sound as if he considered the hit to be reckless.
"I think he did," Collins said when asked if Suggs made contact. "It's hard for me to recalculate every second."
Suggs was adamant that he hadn't done anything worthy of a flag.
"I was trying to get my hand in the passing lane and maybe block a ball," he said. "We hit arms."
Anything short of a 15-yard penalty would have been offset by the call against Roos. Instead, the drive was prolonged, and the Titans completed an 11-play, 80-yard march with an 11-yard TD pass from Collins to Alge Crumpler.
The interpretation gave rookie Baltimore coach John Harbaugh a lesson in accepting a game-turning call in defeat.
"The 5-yard penalty is erased and the 15-yard penalty is used," Harbaugh said. "It's basically a dead play. that's the way it works by rule. That's all I can tell you. That's the explanation I got."
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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