This is why they had to do major surgery on A.R. 15.95 -- because it awarded a catch to a player who lunged for the line to gain, but it said nothing about the player putting his arm down first. A.R. 15.95 called the lunge an "act common to the game" that was separate from the catch process, meaning he didn't have to survive the ground because he'd met the time requirement and become a runner. Sound like any play we've seen before?
2014
A.R. 15.95
Act common to game
Third-&-10 on A20. Pass over the middle is ruled incomplete at the A30. The receiver controlled the pass with one foot down and was then contacted by a defender. As he went to the ground, he got his 2nd foot down and then still in control of the ball he lunged for the line to gain, losing the ball when he landed.
Ruling: Reviewable. Completed pass. A’s ball first-and-10 on A30.
In this situation, the act of lunging is not part of the process of the catch. He has completed the time element required for the pass to be complete and does not have to hold onto the ball when he hits the ground. When he hit the ground, he was down by contact.
2015
A.R. 15.95
Does not become runner prior to going to ground
Third-and-10 on A20. Pass over the middle is ruled incomplete at the A30. The receiver controlled the pass with one foot down and was then contacted by a defender. As he went to the ground, he got his 2nd foot down and then, still in control of the ball, he reached out for the line to gain, losing the ball when he landed.
Ruling: Reviewable. Incomplete pass. A’s ball first-and-10 on A20.
In this situation, the receiver had not clearly become a runner before going to the ground. In order to complete the catch, he must maintain control until after his initial contact with the ground. The act of reaching out with the ball does not trump the requirement to maintain control of the ball when he lands.
Here's why the
old A.R. 15.95 had to go:
It said a player could complete the catch process and become a runner, even while falling (In the old A.R. 15.95, the player didn't get his second foot down until he was already falling).
It said a player could complete the catch process and become a runner by performing
an act common to the game, even while falling.
In 2015, when they got rid of the football move and required the player to be upright in order to complete the catch process, that necessitated either getting rid of A.R. 15.95 or changing it to fit their new catch rule. So they changed it, taking out "act common to the game." They also needed to make it clear that a reach would no longer be considered an act that established a player as a runner (as of 24 hours after the overturn), so they replaced "lunge" with "reach."
If they don't make wholesale changes to this case play for 2015, then they'd still have a scenario in the case book that would confirm a catch in Green Bay.