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The referee's quote was, "in essence," long-winded, yet empty

Following the game last night between the New England Patriots and the Carolina Panthers, which ended in a controversial fashion, where a referee threw an apparent flag for pass interference on a Panthers defensive back in the end zone, but got that call overruled, referee Clete Blakeman had this explanation for reporters:

"So it was determined at that point in time that when the primary contact occurred on the tight end that the ball, in essence, was coming in underthrown and in essence it was [immediately] at that point intercepted at the front end of the end zone. So there was a determination that, in essence, uncatchability, that the ball was intercepted at or about the same time the primary contact against the receiver occurred."

While I personally think the refs should have compromised on the matter, called defensive holding, and given the Patriots one more chance from the 13-yard line after the five-yard penalty, I love Blakeman's response. I wonder if he broke the record for the number of times he said "in essence" in a two-sentence span. If Blakeman is married, I imagine he proposed to his wife in the following manner:

"Honey, in essence, I love you. In essence, I think about you a great deal, which, in essence, means you're always on my mind. What I'm trying to say, in essence, is I love being with you and, in essence, want what we have to last an extremely long time, which, in essence, means forever. Sweetie, will you marry me, and in essence, be my wife, which, in essence, means my one and only true love?"

His wife then probably sarcastically replied with: "In essence, yes."

http://espn.go.com/boston/nfl/story/_/id/9998990/new-england-patriots-seek-explanation-game-ending-play

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