Given the outcry from every corner of the planet including those like me who didn't really care who won the game the NFL felt obligated to respond. If you are a Packer fan you still aren't going to like it but I will paraphrase what it says with this:

Tough titty said the kitty!

Sure, they missed the PI call on WR Golden Tate. They also gave Tate the benefit of a simultaneous catch with only one hand on the ball. But the play was reviewable in the booth since it occurred in the end zone and not the field of play. That was the one piece of info that did help clarify this a bit and not make a bad call even worse.

In the end I have to wonder what in the world the NFL is thinking here. When will the scab referee nightmare end? How many outcomes will need to be contested before they say enough is enough? Will the Cowboys have to get robbed before someone does something?

They are quibbling over peanuts from what I can tell when you consider the millions of dollars at stake. Or is it billions? Didn't Goodell just hammer all the parties in bounty-gate for 'conduct detrimental to the game' and yet here we are seeing refs doing ten times the damage in terms of credibility. This season already has as asterisk for several teams who have been robbed by incompetence.

Hey at least the Panthers got their money's worth on their loss to the Giants. A pack of HS refs could not have won that game against the Giants! ;) I'll stop now....I've got the full text of their release after the jump...

From NFL.com:

In Monday’s game between the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks, Seattle faced a 4th-and-10 from the Green Bay 24 with eight seconds remaining in the game.

Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson threw a pass into the end zone. Several players, including Seattle wide receiver Golden Tate and Green Bay safety M.D. Jennings, jumped into the air in an attempt to catch the ball.

While the ball is in the air, Tate can be seen shoving Green Bay cornerback Sam Shields to the ground. This should have been a penalty for offensive pass interference, which would have ended the game. It was not called and is not reviewable in instant replay.

When the players hit the ground in the end zone, the officials determined that both Tate and Jennings had possession of the ball. Under the rule for simultaneous catch, the ball belongs to Tate, the offensive player. The result of the play was a touchdown.

Replay Official Howard Slavin stopped the game for an instant replay review. The aspects of the play that were reviewable included if the ball hit the ground and who had possession of the ball. In the end zone, a ruling of a simultaneous catch is reviewable. That is not the case in the field of play, only in the end zone.

Referee Wayne Elliott determined that no indisputable visual evidence existed to overturn the call on the field, and as a result, the on-field ruling of touchdown stood. The NFL Officiating Department reviewed the video today and supports the decision not to overturn the on-field ruling following the instant replay review.

The result of the game is final.