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NFL's catch rule committee has 6 members (and Dez Bryant could have input)

Jarrett Bell
USA TODAY Sports
Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant (88) is secure a catch in a controversial ruling against Green Bay Packers cornerback Sam Shields (37) in the fourth quarter in the 2014 NFC Divisional playoff football game at Lambeau Field.

The newly formed committee that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has enlisted to study the nuances of what constitutes a catch consists of six members, including three former head coaches and a Hall of Fame general manager, a person with knowledge of the committee's roster told USA TODAY Sports.

The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the make-up of the committee had not been announced.

Former coaches Ken Whisenhunt, Jim Schwartz and Joe Philbin join former general manager Bill Polian, former NFL receiver James Thrash and Tom Finken, a former NFL side judge who currently trains game officials, on the committee.

And yes, at some point, according to NFL vice president of officiating Dean Blandino, they’d love to hear from Dez Bryant, the Dallas Cowboys star who has volunteered to provide input.

The committee’s review will include the current rule and the history of the catch rule, with the charge to make a recommendation to the NFL’s rule-making competition committee for potential tweaks that would better clarify what constitutes a legal catch.

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“We don’t know what will come out of it,” Blandino told USA TODAY Sports on Thursday. “Maybe there’s something the (competition) committee hasn’t considered in the past.”

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Polian, now an ESPN analyst, previously served as a long-time member of the competition committee during his reign with the Indianapolis Colts. Thrash works in the league office in the player engagement department. Finken graded highly enough during his days as an active official to draw multiple Super Bowl assignments.

Blandino said the catch committee will review plays going back 20 years.

Bryant was the central figure in the most recent playoffs, when his apparent fourth-down catch in the fourth quarter of the NFC divisional playoff at Green Bay was overturned by a replay challenge. The rule was tweaked since last year, when the standard that caused the Bryant catch to be reversed was that the receiver had to make a “football act” while maintaining possession. Now the receiver has to have time to be a runner.

Asked Thursday whether he’s tired of defending the officiating on that play, Blandino quipped, “The expiration date on that play I don’t think will ever end.”

As Bryant heads back to Green Bay for Sunday’s game, he told USA TODAY Sports this week that the catch committee is a good idea. “That’s cool!"

Asked if Bryant’s offer for input would be accepted, Blandino said the committee will certainly want to solicit feedback from players.

“He cares,” Blandino said. “It’s important to him. We definitely want to hear from him.”

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During a season marked by several officiating gaffes in high-profile situations, the most recurring debate has involved controversial catches – or not. That’s what prompted Goodell to ask the panel to make recommendations before the competition committee holds its expansive meetings in early March.

Blandino insists that the rate of questionable calls involving catches hasn’t increased when compared to recent years. Maybe it just seems that way.

“Ever since that play in the playoffs, it’s been a lot more in the forefront,” Blandino said. “After we put in the ‘Calvin Johnson Rule’ (in 2010), it seemed like the whole season there was so much focus on the catch.”

Johnson, by the way, echoes Bryant in his willingness to provide input to the committee.

Follow NFL columnist Jarrett Bell on Twitter@JarrettBell

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