The Saints last played at the Superdome on Oct. 12, defeating Oakland 34-3. Based on a 3 p.m. finish to that game and the start of Monday night's Saints-Packers game at 7:30 p.m., the elapsed time between those games is:

43 (days)

1,036 ? (hours)

62,190 (minutes)

3,731,400 (seconds)

Depending on which sportsbook professional you believe, between $100 million and $500 million was wagered worldwide on last Sunday's game between the San Diego Chargers and Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field.

I bring this up because of the controversial conclusion to the game, won by the Steelers, 11-10. It is the first time a game has ended by that score in NFL history, or 12,837 games.

It finished 11-10 because NFL referee Scott Green waved off an apparent fumble return for a touchdown as time expired by Steelers safety Troy Polamalu that would have boosted the final score to 18-10 with the extra point. Green initially ruled it was a touchdown but disallowed it after conferring with other officials on the field.

Here's how the play read in the official play-by-play:

1-10-San Diego 21: (:05) (Shotgun) Philip Rivers pass short middle to LaDainian Tomlinson to SD 24 for 3 yards. Lateral to Chris Chambers to SD 26 for 2 yards (Troy Polamalu). FUMBLES (Troy Polamalu), RECOVERED by PIT-Troy Polamalu at SD 12. Troy Polamalu for 12 yards, TOUCHDOWN. The Replay Assistant challenged the backward pass ruling, and the play was REVERSED. (Shotgun) Philip Rivers pass short middle to LaDainian Tomlinson, dead ball declared at SD 26 for 5 yards. PENALTY on SD-LaDainian Tomlinson, Illegal Forward Pass, 0 yards, enforce.

End of game.

After the game, Green admitted to a pool reporter that the touchdown should have counted, but the 11-10 score stood.

While the officiating gaffe did not affect the outcome, it greatly affected the amount of money that exchanged hands in the betting public.

RJ Bell of Pregame.com estimated $100 million was wagered worldwide on the game. John Avello, director of the race and sports book at the Wynn Casino/Resort in Las Vegas, speculated to Newsday that the worldwide betting total on the game ranged from $100 million to possibly as high as $500 million.

Bell estimated that 66 percent of the money wagered backed the Steelers, with 34 percent backing the Chargers. Bob Scucci, race and sports book manager for Boyd Gaming, told ESPN that 80 percent of the public bet the Steelers through his property, with only 20 percent backing the Chargers.

Granted, the NFL isn't in the business of promoting gambling and it takes painstaking steps to safeguard the integrity of the game. Yet, there remains the public perception, real or not, that the fix was in.

I don't believe that for one minute. Then again, I didn't wager money on the game, though I did pick the Steelers to cover the spread (they were favored by three to five points in most betting houses) in my weekly selections for The Times-Picayune.

The NFL did the right thing and kept the score 11-10. Changing the score well after the fact only would have exacerbated the problem.

In the end, the reason for instant replay is to get it right. Clearly, Green got it wrong, despite watching it multiple times from different camera angles.

Green's mistake is inexcusable. It is even more regrettable than referee Ed Hochuli's blown call at the end of the Denver-San Diego game in Week 2 that led to the Broncos' 39-38 victory.

Why? Because Hochuli had a split-second to determine if Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler had fumbled or thrown an incomplete pass. After conferring with a replay assistant in the booth, Hochuli admitted on the field that it was a fumble and recovered by the Chargers. But because he inadvertently had whistled the play dead, the ball went back to the Broncos in accordance with the rules.

To ensure that calls are properly implemented in the future, the referee now will be accompanied by one member of his crew under the hood to review plays. The new check-and-balance system went into effect with Thursday night's game between Cincinnati and the Steelers.

"We can sit here and cry in our milk or try to do some things to not let it happen again," NFL supervisor of officials Mike Pereira said.

I'm betting it won't.

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Brian Allee-Walsh may be reached at ballee-walsh@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3805.