Confusing catch rule awards Golden Tate a touchdown

The video replay re-affirmed his belief.

In the second half of Sunday’s Bears-Lions game, a Bears player clearly pushed a Lions player into the ball after a Chicago punt, and the Bears recovered it. The ruling on the field stood after replay review, because replay review isn’t available for the question of whether the Detroit player had been pushed into the ball. In the 1st quarter against the Titans, Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill faked the throw, raising his throwing arm in the air (hence the name of the trick play), and then handed the ball off to wide receiver Jarvis Landry who took it 22 yards for a touchdown.

Remember the so-called Calvin Johnson rule?

While Tate did have two feet on the ground, it did not appear he had full control of the ball. “The ball gets stripped out very quickly, so to me, he does not become the runner, not able to ward off contact, so to me, it’s either ruled incomplete or it’s actually ruled not a catch at that point, then it becomes basically an interception and a touchback”.

“He wasn’t going to the ground, he was standing upright”. The issue here is, did he become a runner before the ball came loose?

“Well in the end zone, once you have a completed catch, it’s a touchdown. The play is over”. Two feet down. Possession of the ball.

Here’s something you most definitely will not be surprised to hear: Walt Anderson made a weird, controversial call in the Bears at Lions game on Sunday afternoon.

“When I caught it, I felt it was a touchdown from the get-go”, Tate said. Numerous arguments have been scenarios where the receiver appears to have control but not long enough for the play to stand. However, the most recent freakish call was the other way around. I didn’t want back-to-back weeks with fumbles. I’m glad I don’t have to make them.

Even though the ruling went in his favor, Tate said he needs to do a better job protecting the football. “I need to catch that ball, secure it and go to the ground, make it not even questionable”. The Tate touchdown, while still prominent in the post-game discussion, was just part of the rubble of one of the most exasperating games to watch and one of the most frustrating to play in.

“I’ll say this: I’ve never played in a game where you had that series of events”, Young said, “big plays, game-changing plays. But I knew our defense was going to give us a chance, and they did”.