The NFL should issue a public apology to the Panthers.

[monstercat]

Again, hitting a runner with your helmet is different from spearing. There's a world of difference in a facemask hitting the side of the helmet or something while tackling and spearing. He ducked his helmet, creating a straight line from the crown of the helmet down his spine (creating the "spear") and drove into Smitty's helmet. That's never legal, defenseless or not.

Exactly. Have some freakin pie.

[Gamecockfan40]

While I whole heartedly agree that the calls and no calls were atrocious today, we have to face facts that we lost the game for ourselves. When your special teams costs you a 10 point spread (13 if you count the field goal that was missed from 52, I dont) you wont win many games in this league. Stop blaming the refs, we should have never been in the situation.

[boo7382]

Was anyone else amazed when Smitty just popped back up and kept running after that 2nd hard hit? Damn that looked like it hurt

[CRA]

Again, hitting a runner with your helmet is different from spearing. There's a world of difference in a facemask hitting the side of the helmet or something while tackling and spearing. He ducked his helmet, creating a straight line from the crown of the helmet down his spine (creating the "spear") and drove into Smitty's helmet. That's never legal, defenseless or not.

sorry for the confusion, as someone pointed out, I was looking at a different play in question.

[Happy Panther]

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/12/23/nfl-apologizes-to-bucs-for-kellen-winslow-td-that-didnt-count/

In the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game against the Lions, Buccaneers tight end Kellen Winslow caught what could have been a game-winning touchdown pass — except that Winslow was called for offensive pass interference, and the Bucs ended up having to settle for a field goal in a game they would lose in overtime.

Now the NFL has told the Bucs the official got the call wrong.

“We got an apology this week on the touchdown to Kellen,” Bucs offensive coordinator Greg Olson said. “That doesn’t help anything at all. . . . We got a number of those this year which has been real discouraging because we’ve played so many tight games. You can’t have those kind of mistakes.”

If that got an apology then so should we.

Doesn't matter though we had plenty of chances to win.

[Lumps]

Was anyone else amazed when Smitty just popped back up and kept running after that 2nd hard hit? Damn that looked like it hurt

Nope. I expected it. Smitty is a nasty mother fuger. He got up and celebrated after someone shatter his arm. Anything less than being knocked out cold and he'll be as feisty as can be.

Don't care about an apology or the officials. Bad calls will be made, that is the game. This team needs to learn to overcome them and learn to win regardless of how the refs fug us. That didn't cost us the game, that was one of a thousand excuses.

Great teams shake it off, use it for fuel and win the game.

As Cam says..."excuses are a disease".