Well, Santonio Holmes had both feet in the end zone and the ball definitely touched the plane of the goal line. OK, it might not have totally been in the end zone, across the line, but those aren't the rules regarding a touchdown. I also thought it was indisputable, and that's why Coleman overruled the original call on the field.

How many times have we seen a running back dive over a pile of human bodies and somehow touch the plane before being knocked back on his butt? I would say thousands. And most of those impossible-to-see plays have been called touchdowns, many of them irrefutable.

For many a year, I have argued with the league that, in this age of mechanisms and advanced technology, there should be a laser-beam line at the front of the goal line and a chip inside every football. When the ball touches the line, a touchdown red light goes on and we don't have to rely on the eyesight of some 55-year-old referee with glasses.

The technology is there to do this. If games are going to be decided by instant replay, which is accepted by every coach and owner, why not spend a few more bucks on a goal-line sensor system? There was a goal-line plunge in the Washington-Cincinnati game Sunday, and believe me, no two side judges would have ruled the same way on a dive by the Redskins' Mike Sellers.

The league can tell me otherwise, but those views from 15 yards away are pretty hard to read, especially on bang-bang plays when the runner is flying forward and then meeting a linebacker who is knocking him backward. Few people would spot the ball, based on forward progress, at the same exact spot. But that's what the NFL demands of its officials. It's a very difficult job and hardly foolproof.

The NFL puts computer chips in every football for the Super Bowl. The technology is there for the red-light touchdown signal. Because for as many people who say Holmes didn't score, Coleman and I and others are convinced that he did. Take the doubt away. If the NFL wants to live by instant replay, which often slows down a game, add another gadget to make sure the ball really did touch the plane of the goal line.

It's definitely needed on those silly goal-line plunges when an official can barely see who has the ball, let alone be convinced that the guy scored.

Titans showing some flaws

The Tennessee Titans better hope that today's MRI reveals that there's nothing structurally wrong with defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth's knee. The Titans won't win a playoff game without him.

This team has suddenly become too fragile, especially on offense where Kerry Collins has returned to earth. Tennessee's running game doesn't have a chance unless Collins is hot and can force the safeties out of the box.

I have to question Titans coach Jeff Fisher deciding against a potential winning field-goal attempt of 49 yards with two minutes left. Instead, Fisher elected to try to convert a fourth-and-three and his team failed. Fisher said after the game that the kick would have been outside the range of kicker Rob Bironas, partly because of wind conditions.

Meanwhile, Titans owner Bud Adams said that Vince Young could be back as a starter next year, which is probably news to Fisher and his players. But if that's the deal, and Adams is not going to pay Collins, who is an unrestricted free agent, then Tennessee has problems.

This isn't the time for Adams to be talking up Young, who is under contract for three more years. Fisher and this team have had a great run, but there are two games left and nothing in the playoffs is assured. The Titans play so many of their games too close for comfort. They lost to a very much improved Houston team, one that has found its offense with the return of quarterback Matt Schaub, who passed for 284 yards, or 100 more than Collins did.

Steve Slaton also recorded his second 100-yard game against the Titans, which is very impressive for a rookie. This has to be the best rookie running back class in recent NFL history.

Panthers are the real deal

The Carolina Panthers will finish the season with an 8-0 home record and, with 11 wins and with Tampa Bay's collapse, look like the second-best team in the NFC after ripping the Denver Broncos.

Unlike the Bucs, the Panthers have a proven superstar in receiver Steve Smith, who had another spectacular game with nine catches for 165 yards and a touchdown. Both DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart had a rushing touchdown as owner Jerry Richardson watched from his stadium suite.

Williams and Stewart have combined for 25 touchdowns, 23 rushing, and they are the best tandem in the game right now, since no one knows when Brandon Jacobs is going to turn up again in the New York Giants' backfield.

Kudos for John Fox and GM Marty Hurney for having the guts to trade away next year's first-round pick for rookie right tackle Jeff Otah. The kid has sealed the deal for the Panthers. Otah is a road grader. He's not a pass-blocking technician like Denver rookie left tackle Ryan Clady, but he's not being asked to do that. He's muscling opposing linemen and linebackers, helping give the Panthers a shot to go deep into the playoffs.

This has been a statement year for Hurney and Fox, who hated to read all those rumors that their careers were in jeopardy if they didn't win this season. Well, they and the Panthers are winning this season. Plus, they are peaking at the right time — in December, when the big games count. Next Sunday they visit the Giants in the Meadowlands and nothing but the top seed in the NFC playoffs could be at stake.

Yes, I have my concerns about Jake Delhomme, but right now everything is clicking in Carolina.

Chargers catch a break