Lions should have retained possession after fumble
The Seattle Seahawks are 2-2 after beating the Detroit Lions 13-10 on Monday Night Football, while the latter is 0-4 and likely out of the playoff picture in early October. If the referees knew the rulebook, that first sentence would probably be much different.
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Trailing 13-10, Detroit mustered up an admirable drive which began inside its own 10-yard line. Once in Seattle’s red zone, Liond quarterback Matthew Stafford drilled a pass to All-Pro receiver Calvin Johnson. Johnson evaded a few tacklers before leaping for the end zone with the ball stretched toward the goal line. Seattle safety Kam Chancellor made an exceptional play and punched the ball out at the last moment, forcing a fumble into the end zone.
The ball bouncing, Seahawks linebacker K.J. Wright purposely punched the ball out of the air – off the bounce – and out of bounds. The ball was rewarded to Seattle, which ran out the clock to win its second consecutive game. All seemed right, until it began to be pointed out after the game that Wright committed an illegal bat. If the NFL’s referees had realized this was a rule, possession would have been given to the Lions with a first and goal situation.
This is the exact rule, per Chris Burke of Sports Illustrated:
Here's the rule: pic.twitter.com/jFtXi28KNQ
— Chris Burke (@ChrisBurkeNFL) October 6, 2015
After the game, NFL head of officiating Dean Blandino gave us this quote, which might be the dumbest comment of all-time:
Wasn't overt?? Get real. Blandino hasn't looked this bad since stepping off Jerry Jones' party bus. https://t.co/2gzV5jcRTc
— Jim Rome (@jimrome) October 6, 2015
Why is it the dumbest comment of all-time? Because apparently this was “not overt”
On more time for those of you catching up. This is an illegal "bat" by Wright in The End Zone. Should be DET ballhttps://t.co/a8WHyPuOt3
— SiriusXM NFL Radio (@SiriusXMNFL) October 6, 2015
The NFL has already owned up to the mistake, stating the the Lions were wronged and should have been given the ball back.
This call could change the face of the NFL this year. While Detroit is likely going to miss the playoffs either way, this would have been a massive win for the Lions. On the flip side, Seattle would have been 1-3 and sitting in the basement of the NFC West. Instead, it gets a win it should not have.
Of course, these two teams are always in the middle of bad calls. Seattle infamously won on Monday Night Football back in Week 3 of the 2012 season on the “Fail Mary,” while Detroit got jobbed earlier in the decade on Johnson’s touchdown catch against the Chicago Bears that was ruled incomplete.