Jared Goff: 'I Do Know That Decker Reported'
"I do know that Decker reported."
That is a postgame quote from Lions quarterback and former Cal star Jared Goff.
Taylor Decker later said the same thing, that he reported. "Went to the ref, said, 'Report,'" Decker said.
Goff has never been known as an excuse-maker, and those comments sure make it seem like Goff got a heroic comeback victory taken from him because of a dubious official's decision.
Goff had not had a good game when Detroit took over at its 25-yard line trailing Dallas by seven points with 1:41 left and no timeouts. But he then proceeded to drive his team 75 yards, completing the possession with an 11-yard touchdown pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown to pull the Lions within 20-19 with 23 seconds left.
Goff then completed a pass to left offensive tackle Taylor Decker for the two-point conversion to put the Lions ahead 21-20, and it seemed the Lions were on the verge of handing the Cowboys their first home loss of the season.
But wait. Referee Brad Allen negated the play and penalized the Lions for an illegal touch, claiming that Decker did not report in as an eligible receiver as he is required to do as an offensive tackle.
After the Lions failed on the next try, the Cowboys were called for offsides, and then Goff threw an incompletion on the third and final two-point try, ending Detroit's chance to win and giving Dallas a 20-19 victory.
Here's the thing: Replays showed that Decker went well out of his way to face Allen from just a few feet away, presumably to say he is reporting as an eligible receiver. There is absolutely no reason Decker would be going that far out of his way to confront the referee unless he was reporting in as an eligible receiver.
Replays indicated that Goff told Decker to make sure he reported in as an eligible receiver, and Goff said later that's what he did. Decker responded by going toward Allen.
Here's the play, with further details below the video:
Decker was one of three Detroit offensive linemen -- along Dan Skipper and Penei Sewell -- who went over to confront Allen before the two-point conversion try. John Parry, a former NFL official who operated as a rules analyst in Saturday's game, said he assumes that Allen simply did not hear Decker or for some reason did not acknowledge Decker's intention to report as eligible.
Parry said it is the player's responsibility to make sure the referee understands that he is reporting in as an eligible receiver, although it's hard to know what else Decker could have done to confirm that Allen had acknowledged his report that he would be an eligible receiver.
It left Goff with an empty feeling.
"I don't know that I've had this feeling before where you feel like you won and didn't,'' Goff said afterward.
Goff went on to say this:
"What I do know, and I don't know if I'll get fined for this, but I do know that Decker reported and I know that Dan Skipper did not, and I do know they said that Dan Skipper did."
It's difficult to square that quote with what happened.
Decker also confirmed that he reported.
"I did exactly what coach told me to do," Decker said. "Went to the ref, said, 'Report.'"
Allen told a pool reporter that No. 70 (Skipper) did report as an eligible receiver and No. 68 (Decker) did not.
Here are the key points of Allen's response:
"So, we had a situation where if you were going to have an ineligible number occupy an eligible position, you have to report that to the referee. On this particular play, number 70, who had reported during the game a couple of times, reported to me as eligible. Then, he lined up at the tackle position. So, actually, he didn't have to report at all. Number 68, who ended up going downfield and touching the pass, did not report. Therefore, he is an ineligible touching a pass that goes beyond the line, which makes it a foul. So, the issue is, number 70 did report, number 68 did not."
Allen was also asked about the conversation between him and the Lions players before the play.
"That conversation is where number 70 reports to me, and I then go to the defensive team, and I say to them, 'Number 70 has reported as an eligible receiver,' so they will be aware of who has reported and then I return to my position. That was the conversation with the defensive line," he said.
Here is the entire report from Allen.
Goff's explanation of the disputed play:
An explanation by ESPN's Ryan Clark
Cover photo of Jared Goff by Tim Heitman, USA TODAY Sports
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