NEW YORK, N.Y. - The union representing NFL on-field officials criticized the league Thursday for inconsistencies in grading calls, including two high-profile penalties from recent games.In a release, the NFL Referees Association says the NFL has caused confusion for NFL officials as to what the league does and doesnt want called.The union referred to penalties on Washingtons Chris Baker for a hit on Eagles quarterback Nick Foles on Sept. 21, and to Chiefs safety Husain Abdullah last Monday night for going to his knees to celebrate an interception return for a touchdown. Abdullah actually had gone to his knees to pray a€” an act exempted from celebration penalties.The union says both calls were graded as correct even after NFL executives announced that they were incorrect. Baker got a 15-yard penalty and was ejected from the game at Philadelphia. Abdullah also received a 15-yard penalty.Consistency in penalty enforcement is extremely important to the players, coaches and fans. Uncertainty as to what the league wants called is not a road you want to go down, said Jim Quirk, executive director of the NFLRA.Quirk noted that Baker was penalized for a blindside block on Foles as a personal foul; a brawl followed near the Washington sideline and Eagles tackle Jason Peters was also ejected.Two days later, Troy Vincent, the NFLs executive vice-president of football operations, said the hit was legal and should not have been penalized. Yet, the NFLRA said, the leagues officiating department a day later graded the call as correct.In the case of the block on Nick Foles, by rule, it was not a foul because the quarterback was pursuing the play, the contact was not to the head or neck area, and the play was not over, NFL spokesman Michael Signora said in an email to The Associated Press. However, the referee a€” watching the play at full speed and without the benefit of a replay review a€” judged that the block was late and threw a flag. While not a correct call, we understand why it was made.In the case of Abdullah, a devout Muslim who took off a year from football to go on a pilgrimage to Mecca, the league said Tuesday that the penalty was in error.The leagues rule book prohibits players from celebrating while on the ground, but spokesman Michael Signora wrote in an email Tuesday that 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.But, according to the union, officials who made the call were given correct grades by the officiating department on Thursday. That could be because Abdullah could have been penalized for sliding on his knees before actually praying.But the league reiterated Thursday what it announced earlier this week, that the call was incorrect and not graded otherwise.As part of evaluating the performance of our game officials, the officiating supervisors recognize that for an incorrect call on a close judgment play, the official may have used appropriate reasoning, Signora said. On such a call, the official is not downgraded.Regardless, said former NFLRA President Scott Green, a recently retired referee, theres a communications problem between the NFL and its game officials.It seems there is a disconnect between what the officiating department expects from officials and the public statements being made by league executives, Green said. It certainly creates uncertainty for the guys making split-second decisions on the field.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFLAir Max Saldi Italia . Moments after scoring and setting off another wild celebration at Minsk arena, Platt leapt into the arms of Belarusian captain Alexei Kalyuzhny. Air Max Scontate Italia . -- Keith Aulie has joined the Tampa Bay Lightning. http://www.airmaxscontateoutlet.it/. - Derek Wolfe says hes finally healthy after suffering a seizure in November that doctors now believe was related to the spinal cord injury he suffered in the preseason. Air Max Outlet Italia . Mako Vunipola was promoted from the reserves, with Matt Mullan called up to the bench on Thursday. "It is important that Joe is with his partner at this exciting time," England coach Stuart Lancaster said. Air Max Offerta Online . Bjoerndalen, who had failed to win any major race for two years before Sochi, writes in a Facebook entry that he is "full of energy and inspiration" after winning the 10-kilometre sprint and mixed relay at last months Olympics.MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Vikings have started the second week of their search for a head coach, and theres plenty of competition for time on their calendar. The Vikings asked to interview Cincinnati offensive co-ordinator Jay Gruden, the younger brother of former NFL head coach and current ESPN game analyst Jon Gruden. But Jay Gruden told reporters in Cincinnati on Monday that Tennessee and Washington have also requested permission. A person with knowledge of the process, speaking on condition of anonymity because the teams have not made information about the search public, told the Associated Press that Detroit has inquired, too. The Vikings fired Leslie Frazier last week and will be making their third head coach hire in eight years, the first by general manager Rick Spielman. Though Houston and Tampa Bay have already filled their jobs, the Vikings still have four other teams interested in many of the same candidates. Spielman was in Arizona on Monday to meet with Cardinals defensive co-ordinator Todd Bowles, according John Wooten, chairman of the Fritz Pollard Alliance. Bowles previously interviewed with Cleveland. Wooten also said Browns defensive co-ordinator Ray Horton was scheduled to meet with Spielman in Arizona on Tuesday. The Vikings and Redskins asked for interviews with San Francisco offensive co-ordinator Greg Roman, the NFL Network reported; 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh confirmed interest in Roman but declined to specify which teams. The Vikings were one of four teams, along with the Lions, Titans and Redskins, who requested interviews with San Diego offensive co-ordinator Ken Whisenhunt, according to a report by CBS Sports. The Vikings interviewed Seattle offensive co-ordinator Darrell Bevell and defensive co-ordinator Dan Quinn over the weekend, ESPN reporrted.dddddddddddd Cincinnati defensive co-ordinator Mike Zimmer is also expected to be on Spielmans list, now that the Bengals are eliminated. NFL rules allow assistant coaches on playoff teams that won wild-card games to be interviewed this week before being put off-limits again until those teams are finished. That includes the 49ers and Chargers, with Roman and Whisenhunt. Bowles and Horton are black. NFL teams are required to interview at least one minority candidate, known as "The Rooney Rule," a product of the push for diversity by Pittsburgh owner Dan Rooney. The Fritz Pollard Alliance, based in Washington, is designed to promote candidate development for coaching, front office and scouting jobs in the NFL. The FPAs strategic efforts include advocacy for and marketing of the hiring and promotion of minorities among NFL teams. Bevell, of course, was here before as the offensive co-ordinator under Brad Childress from 2006-10. Frazier decided not to keep him when he was given the job, hiring Bill Musgrave instead, but Bevell has shined in Seattle working with young quarterback Russell Wilson. Gruden has a productive record working with the Bengals, though theyve gone one and done in the playoffs in each of his three seasons there. Gruden said hed "assume" hell do all of the interviews requested of him. He said he wasnt sure about the Lions, however. "Every interview process I went on last year was different, and they all are a bit intimidating," Gruden said. "But you just have to have confident in who you are. 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