The turning point of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ win over the Green Bay Packers might have been an incomplete pass. Or a fumble. Depending on your perspective. And potentially your jersey.
On 2nd and 9 from the Steelers’ 16-yard line late in the second quarter, QB Kenny Pickett threw a swing pass to RB Jaylen Warren in the flat. The ball clipped off Warren’s hands and bounced away, recovered by the Packers. The question was: Did Pickett’s throw travel backwards or parallel, which would make it a lateral and fumble, or forward, which would make it incomplete?
Ruled incomplete on the field, Packers head coach Matt LaFleur challenged the call. But the play stood upon review, the play remaining incomplete. A surprising call to many, even Steelers fans, who expected bad news after the booth review.
Appearing on a weekly USA Today show in partnership with Clubhouse, Packers CB Keisean Nixon said he believes that Mike Tomlin convinced the officials to let the call stand.
“I just remember the Steelers head coach saying something to the refs,” Nixon told the show Monday evening. “Whatever he said, it really influenced the refs. And they went with that call.”
Let’s take a look at the play.
There’s no question it’s close. But because the initial ruling was incomplete with a lack of clear and overwhelming evidence to overturn it, the refs decided it stood. We don’t know what Tomlin said to the officials — perhaps he made a similar point — but the call was made based off the replay review, not a coach’s comments.
During the game, former NFL official Gene Steratore defended the decision, pointing out that refs used multiple angles to stitch together where the ball was since no one angle perfectly lines up.
Still, not everyone was convinced. After the game, LaFleur said he thought it was a “clear” lateral and fumble. And former ref and current rules analyst Dean Blandino believes it should’ve initially been ruled a lateral/fumble or that the review should’ve overturned the initial call.
“If I’m making this decision on replay, I’m reversing it,” he said in a video for The 33rd Team. “I’m making it a backwards pass. And I’m giving the Packers the ball 1st and goal at the Steelers’ 3.”
Down 17-13, the Packers would’ve had the chance to take the lead had the officials ruled in their favor. Though the Steelers benefitted from the call, they didn’t use it to produce points and punted the ball two plays later. Still, the field position shift was extreme, and Pittsburgh led going into halftime instead of potentially trailing had this been ruled a turnover.
Tomlin’s conversation did not have direct influence on the call but I’m sure his words didn’t hurt the Steelers’ cause, either.
