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Steelers vs. Giants: Ryan Clark lashes out at officials

Ryan Clark said that officials were out to penalize him in Sunday's game against the New York Giants, and that they were wrong to throw a flag on a second-quarter hit on Victor Cruz.

The 33-year-old safety has earned a reputation for being a hard hitter, but feels his hit on Cruz was perfectly legal. Clark didn't appear to be gunning for Cruz' head when he nailed the receiver vying for a deflected pass in the end zone, but he was flagged for making a helmet-to-helmet hit. After replay, it appeared as if the referees had botched the call. Clark said that the officials "knew they were wrong," and made the call because of a vendetta against him:

"They had meetings about me before the game," Clark said. "So any time they see the number 25 flash, and a hit be made, it's going to be an opportunity for me to get a flag."

Clark said that the hit was exaggerated because Cruz had a rib injury. Cruz had said earlier in the week that the Steelers' defensive backs were dirty, and often blatantly committed penalties that weren't getting called.

Photographs by dizfunk used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.