Key overtime ruling in Colts-Chiefs ignored the "clear and obvious" standard
Chiefs should have won the game after LaQuon Treadwell's fumble.
The NFL's centralized replay review system aimed to maintain a consistent standard when reviewing rulings on the field. However, in the Colts-Chiefs overtime game, the standard was not met when the officials ruled that Colts receiver Laquon Treadwell caught the ball, landed on a knee/leg without being touched, and fumbled. It was unclear whether Chiefs cornerback L Jarius Sneed had touched Treadwell after Treadwell completed the catch, requiring a frame-by-frame review.
It was not clear and obvious that Sneed had made contact with Treadwell post-catch. The delay of nearly three minutes between the initial ruling and the final decision further indicated that the mistake was not clear and obvious. The league only overturned the field ruling if 50 drunks in a bar would agree a mistake had occurred.
The decision to re-officialize the play from scratch and conclude that Sneed was still contacting Treadwell was questionable. Ultimately, the league lucked out that the Colts did not capitalize on the unwarranted reprieve and the Chiefs won the game. This incident exposes a flaw in the replay machinery and highlights a potential bias towards the Chiefs.
The league did not adhere to the standard for replay review, as the ruling on the field did not clearly indicate a mistake.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
