Welcome to yet another edition of "Is this a catch?"
This week's episode features Jordy Nelson, who caught a touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers during the second quarter of "Sunday Night Football." That touchdown knotted up the score between the Packers and Redskins, but that's hardly the reason why it matters.
It matters because it, once again, demonstrated how nobody has a clue what qualifies as a catch in the NFL.
On the play, Rodgers scrambled, shrugged off a violent facemask, and fired a rocket to Nelson in the back of the end zone. Nelson snagged the pass, but within a split second, Redskins cornerback Josh Norman knocked the ball out of Nelson's arms. The officials ruled the play a touchdown on the field and, after a review, the catch was upheld.
Take a look:
.@AaronRodgers12 eludes the rush...
— NFL (@NFL) November 21, 2016
And finds @JordyRNelson!
TOUCHDOWN @Packers! #GBvsWAShttps://t.co/Z4CvJgANGe
It's worth noting that, because Nelson wasn't going to the ground, he didn't have to maintain possession through the process of the catch. Check out ESPN's Kevin Seifert's analysis of the catch-rule and how the officials applied it to Nelson's touchdown:
Here's why the NFL upheld Jordy Nelson's touchdown catch for the Packers. NFL rules say that a receiver must have the ball long enough to become a runner in order to establish possession. According to the rules, a player has the ball long enough to become a runner when "after his second foot is on the ground, he is capable of avoiding or warding off impending contact of an opponent, tucking the ball away, turning up field or taking additional steps." The rule applies both in the field of play and in the end zone. I think you could make the argument that Nelson did all of that. Had the play taken place in the field of play exactly the same way, it would have been a catch and a fumble. But as soon as he established possession in the end zone, it was a touchdown and the play was over.
To conclude: The catch-rule isn't clear. But we already knew that.
Remember when the NFL said Odell Beckham didn't catch this pass?
Remember when this wasn't a catch? https://t.co/NED1LiHlEbpic.twitter.com/zyjSvvsSRx
— SB Nation (@SBNation) November 21, 2016
As expected, the internet was confused.
If this is a touchdown I'm completely lost on what a catch is
— Terrance Knighton (@MisterRoast98) November 21, 2016
Ref: Nelson barely had control of the ball
— Jennifer X. Williams (@JenXperience) November 21, 2016
Dark side ref: It's a touchdown pic.twitter.com/b0478rFaMA
How in the world was that a catch? Even Nelson thought it wasnt.
— Jason_OTC (@Jason_OTC) November 21, 2016
That Nelson TD needs to be reviewed with a real-time replay. Slo-mo can make it seem like he had it for an hour.
— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) November 21, 2016
New rule: Catch is defined by holding onto ball for One Mississippi, regardless of anything that happens after One Mississippi. I think.
— Jeff Darlington (@JeffDarlington) November 21, 2016
What is a catch? What is anything, really?
— Andrea Hangst (@FBALL_Andrea) November 21, 2016
NFL still has to figure out what a catch is
— Joe Theismann (@Theismann7) November 21, 2016
Is it a touchdown? pic.twitter.com/SHOUazqxPR
— Mike Clay (@MikeClayNFL) November 21, 2016
And that concludes this week's edition of "Is that a catch?"