Saints Question Overturned Fumble-Return Touchdown in 31-30 Overtime Loss at Detroit
Jonas Sanker's second-quarter scoop-and-score was wiped out on review when officials ruled Jared Goff's arm was already moving forward when Chase Young hit him, making it an incomplete pass rather than a fumble.
The New Orleans Saints lost 31-30 in overtime at Detroit on Sunday, and the play they left Ford Field talking about was a touchdown that didn't count: Jonas Sanker's return of a ball knocked loose from Jared Goff by Chase Young in the second quarter, overturned on review and ruled an incomplete forward pass.
What was the ruling?
Young hit Goff near the Lions' 23-yard line with 9:33 left in the first half, the ball came out, and Sanker scooped it and scored on what was initially ruled a backward pass. On review, officials determined Goff's arm had started moving forward before the contact. "The arm was going forward. It had a forward motion," said Mark Butterworth, the NFL's vice president of replay, explaining that the hit came during Goff's windup rather than before it.
How did the Saints respond?
Young said he had never seen a ruling like it, and linebacker Kaden Elliss said "it looked a whole lot like a sack/fumble." Coach Kellen Moore called it "a little bit of a challenging circumstance" while acknowledging that "once the arm is moving, no matter where the ball's going, there's a protection there." Quarterback Tyler Shough called it "obviously a huge momentum swing" in a game New Orleans, playing without Alvin Kamara, Jordyn Tyson and Cameron Jordan, took to overtime as a 10-point underdog.
Players in this story
Sources
- ESPN: Saints irked by overturned defensive TD in OT loss to Lions
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