The impact of the Lions fail controversial two-point play

[THEHEREAFTER]

One lucky play has changed the dynamics of our postseason. Without it, we lose, with little or no chance to win the division and no home playoff games. But here we are, divisional champs and two wins away from the NFCCG.

There was no "luck." It was a pivotal play but detroit attempted to fool everyone and didn't execute also ingnoring the lineman who was ANNOUNCED eligible. They then failed twice more instead of going to OT. Further, the game most likely doesn't come down to this if not for a phantom tripping penalty? Do we all know this by now? Apparently not. No luck involved.

 

[Pessimist_cowboy]

Dude just stop already sick of that dumb play.

 

[SackMaster]

It would have been interesting had the right player been reported or announced by the officials.

Since the Cowboys did not know #68 was running a route, it was an easy catch since there was no reason to cover him.

If the Lions had not tried to confuse the defense and followed procedures, they could have actually won the game had they converted it.

Yep. Had the Refs called the right guy, it could have gone either way. The defense could have lost #68 and he could have been wide open like he was. Or they could have covered him and they don't convert.

The sad thing is that an NFL Head Coach thought he could trick the other team on a procedural instance where not only is the defense informed first on who the eligible player is, but then an announcement is made over the PA system on who the eligible player is as a SECOND announcement.

The Lions and their fans are acting like the officials should have left the play count when CLEARLY they announced #70 as eligible, but CLEARLY #68 caught the pass.

But I wouldn't put that past the officials because I remember ...

• Jerome Bettis CLEARLY call heads on an overtime coin flip, the coin lands on Heads, and the Refs gave the choice to kickoff or receive to the other team
  • And this is when a FG could win it in OT without the other team ever getting a shot
• A Rams defender CLEARLY blast a receiver before he had a chance to catch the ball, and it not be flagged
  • Its not like ANY ref couldn't have seen it, but there was a Ref right there staring at the play and still didn't throw a flag

I feel for them the wrong player was announced as eligible. But I do not feel sorry for them that the correct call was made.

They gotta do better to make sure the correct player is reported as eligible. Let alone after the "bad call" double down TWO MORE TIMES, and still fail.

JMHO

 

[drawandstrike]

Yeah, I tried pointing that out immediately after the game, but most non-Cowboys fans and even some Cowboys fans fail to understand that the reason the play actually worked was that the Cowboys had no idea #68 was eligible to run a route and much less catch a pass.

If they had known, they would have tried to cover him. The play may have worked or they may have scored a different way, but we have no idea because they intentionally confused the referee while trying to confuse the defense.

I actually got into a huge argument on Twitter when I pointed the Detroit coaching staff deliberately engaged in deception by sending 3 lineman at the referee all at once, hoping to confuse the Cowboy defense about which one was declaring his eligibility to Brad Allen.

"How hard is it to REMEMBER A NUMBER and tell the defense the right number!" I had yelled at me.

Amazing enough, somebody posted a video mocking me that ACTUALLY PROVED MY POINT.

Here it is below.



All three converge on Brad Allen, and apparently the other two were there as decoys and #68 Decker was the one who declared eligibility. But it looks like Brad Allen heard wrong and announced #70, Skipper to the defense.

 

[rambo2]

To me the bigger deal was the bogus tripping call which took away 2nd and 3 on the 23 yard line.

Then throw in that the Cowboys probably cover a guy if he is announced aa eligible.

 

[rambo2]

I actually got into a huge argument on Twitter when I pointed the Detroit coaching staff deliberately engaged in deception by sending 3 lineman at the referee all at once, hoping to confuse the Cowboy defense about which one was declaring his eligibility to Brad Allen.

"How hard is it to REMEMBER A NUMBER and tell the defense the right number!" I had yelled at me.

Amazing enough, somebody posted a video mocking me that ACTUALLY PROVED MY POINT.

Here it is below.



All three converge on Brad Allen, and apparently the other two were there as decoys and #68 Decker was the one who declared eligibility. But it looks like Brad Allen heard wrong and announced #70, Skipper to the defense.

It's funny and no acknowledgement that the defense would cover the guy that is announced as eligible.

 

[Reality]

I actually got into a huge argument on Twitter when I pointed the Detroit coaching staff deliberately engaged in deception by sending 3 lineman at the referee all at once, hoping to confuse the Cowboy defense about which one was declaring his eligibility to Brad Allen.

"How hard is it to REMEMBER A NUMBER and tell the defense the right number!" I had yelled at me.

Amazing enough, somebody posted a video mocking me that ACTUALLY PROVED MY POINT.

Here it is below.



All three converge on Brad Allen, and apparently the other two were there as decoys and #68 Decker was the one who declared eligibility. But it looks like Brad Allen heard wrong and announced #70, Skipper to the defense.

What most Lions fans and Cowboys-haters fail to understand is that few people are defending the referee because it is quite likely he heard it wrong or mistakenly thought the player running in from the sidelines (which is normally where the eligible linemen come from) was the eligible receiver.

What most of us (and some of the more intelligent media people) have been saying is that the play worked because the referee told the Cowboys #70 was eligible, not #68.

Why they were told #70 is a valid complaint for Lions fans, but saying the "Cowboys got lucky" when they were not told a non-eligible player who was lined up in the normal tackle position was going to run a route is ridiculous.

The play worked because no one covered him since no one thought he was going to run a route, much less catch a pass.

If they knew #68 was eligible, they would have tried to cover him. Maybe the Lions would have converted it, maybe they would not have, but we have no idea because 1) the Lions confused the referee and 2) the referee told the wrong eligible player number to the Cowboys defense.

If I was a Lions player, coach or fan, I would be irritated too, but I would not be blaming the Cowboys, but rather the referee for getting it wrong and the head coach a little for causing the entire situation by trying to be sneaky on a play that is designed to not be allow "sneakiness" by NFL rules.

 

[adamknite]

Well you are talking about Detroit fans and Dallas haters. Of course they are going to view the play through those lenses. The play was carefully crafted to be deceptive and legal but 68 had to be announced as eligible. Certainly, Lewis would have covered 68 had he been announced but the “Lions got screwed” people only see that they initially converted the two points and it was taken away by the refs calling a penalty that was only a penalty because they announced the wrong player. Nothing else matters to them. 68 caught it and the Lions should have 21 points and a W. People who are objective understand that whatever actually happened with the ref and those 3 OL, it certainly was not clear that 68 was eligible. To the ref it was clear that 70 was eligible and that’s why he announced him. Everything from their perspective is based on believing that 68 did in fact report and made it clear but the ref for some reason announced 70 instead. That argument never made sense to me. It’s obvious that 68 was being coy so as to not alert Dallas and ending up not making it clear to the ref. But to my original point, no one is saying the refs shouldn’t have called the penalty. They are saying the ref announced the wrong player, either by mistake or on purpose thus making a legal play that succeeded a penalty.

We're talking about the same thing now my guy. I was just pointing that out and saying that most talking heads or anybody who hear bring up the subject is bringing it up in the light of "The Lions got screwed" and acting like we benefited from the situation when in actually if you turn the situation around we would have been screwed even worse. At least they got another (actually another 2) shot at converting, if it had been the reverse scenario we lose (baring some 20 second heroics.)

 

[Blackspider214]

If the refs actually got the tripping call correct on the drive before, it would have been over well before then. Football gods looking down on us for once.

 

[JD_KaPow]

Semantics,,, use of the term is just another way of saying the positive outcome was statistically unlikely.

I would say that luck refers to a result that is out of the control of the people present and their individual skill, and essentially unpredictable, like a coin flip.
The Lions play and its result had nothing to do with luck.

 

[CT Dal Fan]

It would have been interesting had the right player been reported or announced by the officials.

Since the Cowboys did not know #68 was running a route, it was an easy catch since there was no reason to cover him.

If the Lions had not tried to confuse the defense and followed procedures, they could have actually won the game had they converted it.

The Lions also could have won if they succeeded on their other TWO attempts at 2 points. They also could have won in overtime if it occurred to Dan Campbell at least once out of three times he could kick an extra point too.

 

[adamknite]

Why they were told #70 is a valid complaint for Lions fans, but saying the "Cowboys got lucky" when they were not told a non-eligible player who was lined up in the normal tackle position was going to run a route is ridiculous.

I could not agree more. You see Bell point to 70 and essentially say "cover him" and Lewis has said that's what he did and would have covered 68 if he was the one called as eligible. Then a guy who wasn't supposed to be running a route by rule (as it was known to Dallas at the time) caught a 2-point and "won the game."

Dallas in no shape, form, or any logical stretch of the imagination... "got lucky" in that scenario. Now if Detroit fans or Dallas haters want to say it was unfair because Detroit had to try again from further back... Ok, but maybe not try and confuse the referee next time then, because you know... it worked this time and you lost yards because of it.

 

[Kevinicus]

National media and non Cowboys fans only watches the last drive of any game. I swear. They do that with every single game, including that first playoff game we played vs SF.... all they ever discuss is Dak's failure to spike the ball and ignoring everything that came before. It's easy to look at one play and derive conclusions.

But the fact of the matter is that the Cowboys defense was superior. Anyone with eyeballs saw that. Now the Lions had 3 drives ended by Aidan Hutchinson and that's cool, but where they had one player doing everything.... we had multiple players make plays and make them look inept in the passing game. We held them to below their normal totals passing. They might've had the superior running game tho.

And let's just conveniently forget that if not for some stupid Touchback rule, Detroit likely never even gets a game winning drive.. That rule is the dumbest rule in all of football - it's just where you get lucky the ball goes out of bounds, you want it to go out of the bounds at the 2 instead of behind the pylon.

At home with a lead we are the best team in the league. 14-3 and I highly doubt Detroit can orchestrate a comeback. And the stupid tripping call they didn't show the replay of on TV so none of the idiot anti Cowboys guys know about that play. Yet any thinking viewer and football minded analyst even Rodgers saw that there wasn't any tripping.

So sick and tired of hearing this. This is just stuff Packers and Niners fans are using to degrade our 12 win season.

Oh, Cowboys fans do this a ton as well.

 

[Silverz1972]

Never know when opposing team report wrong players and the only reason it even got there was because of a bogus tripping call

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

It doesn't surprise me that you have no problem with what's going on.

it doesn't surprise me the BS you continue to post. meaningless drivel. continuously

you contribute nothing. you mean nothing. no one ever respects anything you have ever said. not once (except the cult memebers). you have continuously failed.

p.s.
Is Tashard Choice still as good as Emmitt smith as you so vehemently argued?

 

[ActualCowboysFan]

yes we all know the truth.
one you are not a cowboys fan
two, and clearly the Lions shouldn't even gotten a chance since a blatant tripping penalty on hutchinson was blamed on hendershot, so instead of 15 for dallas, it was 15 gifted to Detroit. yeah, but alcoholics like you have memory of a fly.

like I said we know the truth. you are clueless. now go cry in your whiskey

That guy was betting people that if Dak started Dallas would only win five games and now he’s spun himself into some vast conspiracy about the league rigging games for Dallas with the cooperation of opposing players.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

That guy was betting people that if Dak started Dallas would only win five games and now he’s spun himself into some vast conspiracy about the league rigging games for Dallas with the cooperation of opposing players.

I remember. he is full of this stuff. he is an idiot and been around for a while. like I said in my post. he argued, endlessly that Tashard choice is as good as Emmitt Smith. oh, and that Moore as the backup QB behind Romo was more talented and a HOF type QB....his argument was based on one throw, which btw, was intercepted. for some reason this one was so ridiculous it stuck in my mind...probably because its so stupidly funny

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

To me the bigger deal was the bogus tripping call which took away 2nd and 3 on the 23 yard line.

Then throw in that the Cowboys probably cover a guy if he is announced aa eligible.

why didn't MM throw the red flag is beyond me.

 

[rambo2]

why didn't MM throw the red flag is beyond me.

That's not reviewable.

 

[glimmerman]

Let it go. What if the refs threw the flag when we played egirls the first time. Our TE was tackled before he touched the ball . Would have been first and goal at the 4 inch line..