Something about a leg in the air

Michael Rosenberg, Detroit Free Press:

Now the top-seeded Colts are out of the NFL playoffs, unless the league decides the clock malfunctioned and the Colts get another few minutes to try to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers - which, the way things unfolded Sunday, is possible.

...

First, they won it when Troy Polamalu intercepted a Peyton Manning pass with 5 minutes, 26 seconds left, giving Pittsburgh the ball with a 21-10 lead.

But wait. After further review (and, I would guess, some sort of pharmaceutical overdose) referee Pete Morelli said the pass was incomplete.

Joe Posnanski, Kansas City Star:

Referee Pete Morelli, in a move that seemed to surprise even the hometown Colts fans, overturned the interception. His explanation was as baffling as the overturn - something about a leg being up in the air - and Manning quickly drove the Colts to the Pittsburgh 3.

Michael Lev, Orange County Reporter:

Polamalu dove in front of Manning's pass for tight end Bryan Fletcher, caught the ball, then dropped it while getting up and attempting to run. The officials ruled it an interception, which would have given the Steelers the ball with 5:26 left and a 21-10 lead. But Colts coach Tony Dungy challenged the play, and referee Pete Morelli overturned it. Indianapolis drove for a touchdown and made a two-point conversion to trim the deficit to three.

Morelli explained that Polamalu lost the ball with one of his legs "still on the ground. Therefore he did not complete the catch."

Judy Battista, New York Times:

On the Colts' next possession, they got what might have been a game-turning call by officials. It appeared that Polamalu had intercepted a Manning pass at midfield and had then fumbled the ball as he began to run with it.

But officials overturned the call, ruling that the pass was incomplete, even though it appeared Polamalu had taken several steps while in possession.

FWIW. What a crazy game.

Also, Roethlisberger is completely right here:

I think the smart play was to give Jerome the ball and I guarantee if we got the chance 100 times, we’d do it every time.

There's no second-guessing that handoff to Jerome.