Dez Bryant on catch: 'Please, please, please take that rule out'
With his team trailing 26-21 in the waning minutes of the NFC divisional playoff against the Green Bay Packers, Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant made a leaping, potentially game-saving catch on fourth-down. Until he didn't.
Dez Bryant's Catch, Non-Catch
David E. Klutho/SI
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David E. Klutho/SI
Mike McGinnis/Getty Images
Mike McGinnis/Getty Images
Mike McGinnis/Getty Images
David E. Klutho/SI
Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
Matt Ludtke/AP
Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
The initial ruling on the field - that Bryant caught the ball - was overturned when referees ruled he did not maintain possession of the ball all the way through the play. Dallas then forfeited the ball on downs and never got it back.
The NFL rules state in order for a catch to be complete, the player "must maintain control of the ball long enough...to enable him to perform any act common to the game (i.e., maintaining control long enough to pitch it, pass it, advance with it, or avoid or ward off an opponent, etc.)"
When told of this rule, Bryant expressed confusion, then begged for it to be removed from the rulebook, the New York Daily News reported.
Bryant's intra-division rival, New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., even offered Bryant accolades for the apparent catch...
...and then voiced his surprise once the call was overturned.
Check out the play below and decide for yourself whether or not Bryant made the catch. (h/t FanSided for the gif).
- Will Green
