2012 Packers – Seahawks officiating controversy The 2012 Packers – Seahawks officiating controversy arose during the final play of an American football game between the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League ( NFL ) that occurred on September 24 , 2012 at CenturyLink Field in Seattle , Washington . In a nationally - televised game on ESPN ' s " Monday Night Football " , the Seahawks defeated the Packers , 14 – 12 , in controversial fashion . On the final play of the game , Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson threw a Hail Mary pass into the end zone intended for wide receiver Golden Tate . Both Tate and Packers defender M . D . Jennings got their hands on the ball while attempting to gain possession . The two officials near the play initially gave separate rulings of touchdown and timeout , before ruling the players had simultaneous possession , resulting in a Seahawks game - winning touchdown . Prior to the catch , Tate shoved Packers cornerback Sam Shields with both hands , which the NFL later acknowledged should have drawn an offensive pass interference penalty that would have negated the touchdown and resulted in a Packers victory . The controversial ending followed weeks of criticism regarding the quality of officiating by replacement officials employed by the NFL during the 2012 NFL referee lockout . Two days after the game , the NFL and the NFL Referees Association announced they had reached an agreement to end the lockout . NFL commissioner Roger Goodell acknowledged that the negative attention the game drew to the referee situation was an impetus for ending the labor dispute . Events of the play . With eight seconds left in the fourth quarter , the Packers led 12 – 7 . The Seahawks possessed the ball at the Packers ' 24 - yard line with a fourth down - and - 10 situation . On the final play of the game , Wilson threw a Hail Mary pass into the Packers end zone . Several Packers and Seahawks leapt to catch the ball , including Tate . Tate pushed off of Packers defender Sam Shields , knocking him to the ground , but did not draw an offensive pass interference penalty . As the players leapt , Packers safety M . D . Jennings appeared to grab the football with both arms as Tate reached into him to grab the ball with one arm . The NFL rule for simultaneous catch states , " If a pass is caught simultaneously by two eligible opponents , and both players retain it , the ball belongs to the passers . It is not a simultaneous catch if a player gains control first and an opponent subsequently gains joint control . If the ball is muffed after simultaneous touching by two such players , all the players of the passing team become eligible to catch the loose ball . " The two officials near the play conferred and then simultaneously made separate rulings ; side judge Lance Easley raised his arms to signal touchdown , while back judge Derrick Rhone - Dunn waved his arms to signal timeout . Contrary to popular fan belief , an interception in the end zone is not signaled by simply stopping the clock . Because this interception would have resulted in a touchback , the proper mechanic would have been that of a touchback , wherein one arm is waved above the head , or " half " of the timeout signal . Because Rhone - Dunn signaled " timeout " so as to stop the game clock ( apparently unaware that time had already expired , effectively making this mechanic unecessary ) , Rhone - Dunn indicated that he desired further investigation of the play before rendering a verdict whereas Easley , from his angle , found sufficient evidence of a simultaneous catch with which to call a Rule 8 . 1 . 3 touchdown . At no point , however , did either official signal an interception . The ruling on the field was officially touchdown , with Tate and Jennings maintaining " simultaneous possession " . By rule , simultaneous possession defers to the offensive player . Replay official Howard Slavin initiated a video review , as is required of all scoring plays . According to an NFL press release after the game , " 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 . " Referee Wayne Elliott determined that there was not adequate evidence to overturn the call , so the ruling stood as a touchdown . As the teams and sports media swarmed the field , the Packers left the field and reported to their locker room , but were required by officials to return to the field for a mandatory point after attempt per the NFL rules . " Reaction . The officiating crew was widely criticized for the quality of officiating in the game . " Monday Night Football " announcer Jon Gruden said on - air , " This is comical to me . That ' s two of the worst calls at the end of a football game that I can remember . " Former quarterback Warren Moon speculated that the game could be an impetus to resolving the labor dispute , saying , " This could be the game that gets a deal done . Something like this , on the league ' s biggest stage , on Monday night , it ' s just not good for the game . You could argue the officials had a hand in the outcome , that they cost Green Bay the game or would have cost the Seahawks . " ESPN ' s Kevin Seifert wrote , " In all , it was one of the most disorganized and embarrassing scenes you ' ll ever see on an NFL field . At least , so far . " Las Vegas oddsmakers estimated that over $ 300 million in bets changed hands due to the final play . Offshore betting website SportsBook . ag announced that it would be refunding wagers for customers outside of the United States who bet on the Packers . In the wake of the controversial ending , ESPN ' s sports news program " SportsCenter " achieved its highest ratings ever , receiving a 5 . 0 overnight Nielsen rating . Reportedly , 70 , 000 voicemail messages were left at NFL offices by disgruntled fans . Many NFL players commented on the ending , including several Packers players . Green Bay offensive lineman T . J . Lang tweeted after the game , " Got fucked by the refs . . Embarrassing . Thanks nfl . " He later added , " Fuck it NFL . . Fine me and use the money to pay the regular refs , " a message that was re - tweeted 92 , 314 times on September 26 , breaking a Twitter record . Lang openly admitted that his team was considering going on strike if the lockout was not resolved . Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers responded by saying , " First of all , I ' ve got to do something that the NFL is not going to do : I have to apologize to the fans . Our sport is a multi - billion dollar machine , generated by people who pay good money to come watch us play . The product on the field is not being complemented by an appropriate set of officials . The games are getting out of control . " The day after the game , New Jersey State Senator Stephen Sweeney , a Packers fan , announced plans to introduce legislation banning replacement officials from working professional sporting events in New Jersey . Green Bay ' s mayor Jim Schmitt sent a letter to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell , stating , " As an elected official and public steward , I ' m concerned about the impact on the integrity of the game and the significant financial effect that it may have upon our community . " US President Barack Obama weighed in on the ending , calling it " terrible " and adding , " I ' ve been saying for months , we ' ve gotta get our refs back . " The winning catch has been referred to in the media by the nicknames " Fail Mary " and " Inaccurate Reception " , and Russell Wilson was referred to as having thrown a " game winning interception " . In an interview with TMZ three days after the game , side judge Lance Easley defended his touchdown ruling , saying " It was the correct call . " When asked why it wasn ' t an interception , he said , " You have to not only have the ball but have either two feet or a body part on the ground , and that never happened . " He later added , " Put any other official who knows the rules and they would make the same call . " However , the day before Easley made that comment , locked out referee Walt Anderson , who has worked numerous NFL postseason games including two Super Bowls , said he would have ruled interception either on the field or under the hood . In addition , Bill Leavy , speaking on behalf of the locked out NFL officials including Ed Hochuli , said " they would have ruled Monday Night ' s would be an interception , " and added " Like Ed , I ' ve never seen one , " referring to a simultaneous catch . NFL statement . The NFL released an official statement that , while acknowledging that pass interference should have been called on Tate , supported the decision to uphold the play as simultaneous possession : 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 and the officials ( who were the original officials in control of the instant replay ) 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 . Impact . On September 26 , 2012 , two days after the game , an agreement was reached between the NFL and NFL Referees Association to end the 2012 NFL referee lockout that began in June 2012 . The contentious nature of the replacement officials ' decision at the end of the Packers - Seahawks game is widely considered to have been the tipping point that finally led to the agreement . Goodell acknowledged that the game " may have pushed the parties further along " in negotiations . Various sports writers speculated on how this game would affect the standings for the rest of the regular season . For example , Kevin Seifert of ESPN frequently posted the playoff standings if the Packers had defeated the Seahawks instead . Ultimately , the Packers went on to win the NFC North division title with an 11 – 5 win – loss record , but finished with the third playoff seed behind the second - seeded 11 – 4 – 1 NFC West champion San Francisco 49ers , and thus Green Bay had to play in the Wild Card Round instead of receiving a first round bye . The Seahawks ended up with an 11 – 5 record and the fifth seed , ahead of the sixth - seeded 10 – 6 Minnesota Vikings ; even if Seattle did not have that extra win , they would have still been the fifth seed seed at 10 – 6 because they held the head - to - head tiebreaker over the Vikings . Both Green Bay and Seattle eventually were eliminated in the Divisional Playoff Round .