Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell stands on the sidelines against the New Orleans Saints during the second quarter at Ford Field.
David Reginek-Imagn Images
Fans of the New Orleans Saints were up in arms after a critical touchdown against the Detroit Lions on Sunday was overturned by the replay official, who ruled that it was an incomplete pass.
In the second quarter, Saints defensive end Chase Young sacked Lions quarterback Jared Goff, resulting in the ball popping out. Saints defensive back Jonas Sanker scooped it up and ran to the end zone to tie the score, 7-7. It, however, was nullified.
The Saints ended up losing to the Lions by a hair in overtime, 31-30.
In a report from ESPN's Katherine Terrell, even Detroit coach Dan Campbell was surprised by the call.
“I'll take that one. I'll be the first to say, I thought we lost that one. The arm was going forward. It had a forward motion. That was how they saw it. We got one. We'll take that,” said Campbell.
Like Campbell, Goff admitted that he was unsure about the decision. He went 26-of-39 for 206 yards, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions. He was sacked once.
“I was trying to figure it out on the fly too,” said the five-time Pro Bowler.
After the game, the NFL swiftly issued an explanation, stating that “Goff already started his throwing motion, and then the defender contacted him.”
“The throwing motion starts when he begins to bring the ball up as a part of his windup,” noted NFL vice president of instant replay Mark Butterworth.
The Lions escaped after the Saints blew their two-point attempt to win the game instead of tying it.
Detroit will visit the Buffalo Bills in Week 2.