The penalty on the Chiefs player was not about praying. It was about the slide.

[Dreamer Tatum]

Praying, despite the hysterical braying about NFL inconsistency, is still legal. Evidently it was the slide
leading up to the prayer that was viewed as excessive celebration.

Even so, one can argue that the slide did not rise to the level of a penalty-worthy offense.

Hope this helps people prioritize their outrages today.

[Ptah]

1. NFL: Husain Abdullah penalty wrong

Husain Abdullah should not have received a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty after dropping to his knees and bowing in prayer following a 39-yard interception return for a touchdown during the Kansas City Chiefs' 41-14 victory over the New England Patriots on Monday night, the NFL said Tuesday.

According to Rule 12, Section 3, Article 1 (d), "Players are prohibited from engaging in any celebrations or demonstrations while on the ground."


"However, the officiating mechanic in this situation is not to flag a player who goes to the ground as part of religious expression, and as a result, there should have been no penalty on the play," NFL spokesman Michael Signora told ESPN's Ed Werder.


http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/11616422/nfl-says-husain-abdullah-kansas-city-chiefs-penalized-praying-celebration

[Dreamer Tatum]

2. There we have it. Let's draw and quarter the ref and move on. nt

[liberal_at_heart]

5. Good. I'm glad they came out with a statement saying the penalty was wrong.

[JayhawkSD]

3. What no one has said, but I suspect is the case...

...is that the ref who threw the flag did not realize he was praying because he did not recognize the position. Amurikans to not pray like that, you know.

[Dreamer Tatum]

4. I'm sorry, I don't know what "Amurikan" means. nt

[ieoeja]

6. You are lying.

You've been on DU a long time. You know perfectly well it refers to those Americans who embrace ignorance as a virtue. Those Americans who complain about the "intellectual elites". Those who say, "you know, there is such a thing as too much education," a phrase I have heard a hundred times over. Those Americans who think, "if it's American, it's good".

You know all of this. But are pretending to be too stupid to understand because, I dunno, you must think that being stupid would be a point in your favor?

Maybe you didn't think this one through.

[Dreamer Tatum]

7. Or maybe I'm tired of people assuming the worst about everyone.

Yeah, that ref is an "Amurikan," as you can clearly see by the bucket of chicken he hauls behind him. The Lee Greenwood CD is always playing on that boombox he hauls around, and he's only slowed slightly by the Truck Nutz he attached to his own nuts.

To put it in terms you might be able to understand: maybe the ref made what used to be called a MISTAKE and an error in judgment, which just MIGHT not have been caused by jingoism. Just maybe.

[ieoeja]

8. In terms *I* "might be able to understand"? I'm not the one who pretended to be ignorant here. n/t

[snooper2]

10. I didn't see any pretending either LOL

[Logical]

9. No, NFL says penalty was a mistake! nt

[bigwillq]

11. It should not have been a penalty either way

And I believe the NFL admitted the flag was a mistake, that the flag should not have been thrown. So, I do think it was about the prayer and not the slide.