For a moment, the Pittsburgh Steelers appeared to have broken through and found the end zone. An offense stalling on its first two red-zone attempts, QB Russell Wilson found WR George Pickens on third down midway through the second quarter. Pickens made a great hands catch, secured the ball cleanly, and the refs ruled touchdown. With the extra point, Pittsburgh was about to take a 13-6 lead over the New York Giants.
That it, until it was ruled incomplete. Improbably, Pickens failed to get his left foot inbounds, pushed by CB Deonte Banks out of the end zone. Here’s a look at the play.
Pickens tapped his right foot down twice. Shouldn’t that qualify as a touchdown? Unfortunately, the rule is “two feet,” not “two foot.” Jori Epstein shared the official rulebook below.
“Both feet” is the key phrase and alas, Pickens clearly didn’t get his left foot down. A great throw and catch but better defensive play from the Giants, who forced the Steelers to kick their third field goal of the night.
Worst yet, Mike Tomlin attempted to challenge the play. But because it was initially ruled a touchdown, it was automatically reviewed. Meaning, Tomlin isn’t allowed to challenge it and lost a timeout as a result, leaving the Steelers with just one left in the half.
A similar situation played out last year against the Tennessee Titans. Despite ample room, Pickens was unable to get his left foot down and had a touchdown negated because of it. Here, there was no force out.
Pittsburgh leads New York 9-6 late in the first half. Pickens officially has two catches for 25 yards. And no touchdowns.
