Refs may have taken a Rico Dowdle TD away with incorrect whistle

Rico Dowdle was an unfortunate victim of a horrible referee blunder on Saturday. The refs blew a play dead when he could have, because it was a fumble and not an incomplete pass, advanced the ball. The Carolina Panthers ended up losing yards because of this mistake.

That alone is bad enough. It cost the Panthers field position and forced a long field goal try, which was no good in the wet conditions. But on the All-22 camera angle, we can see that it's actually a whole lot worse than that.

Had the refs let the play continue, Dowdle very possibly could've scored a go-ahead touchdown.

Rico Dowdle might've scored on inadvertent whistle play

Nov 20, 2022; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; NFL referee Brad Allen (122) signals in infraction in the second quarter of the game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Referees are human, and they make errors. The Panthers now know that very well, as they made several costly blunders against the Panthers. Still, the human element is part of the game, even if it's unfortunate.

But this time, the human element might've really cost the Panthers a score and a potential win. In the second half, that inadvertent whistle that blew the play dead seems to have prevented a likely touchdown from occurring.

Oh my God Dowdle had a touchdown 💔💔💔 https://t.co/7FlElMS0KG pic.twitter.com/STsgl221JO
— ⛷️ (@ThomasWrrld) January 4, 2026

Here's a grainy screenshot of roughly when the whistle was blown. As you can see, Dowdle had space and blockers. He likely would've burst past that first defender, or Cade Mays would've just bloced him again.

Downfield, there were two defenders on that side of the field, with two others who could've made their way over by the time Dowdle got there. That means there were four total defenders who could've made a play on it, and one was being blocked out of the play.

Dowdle had five blockers out there. Even if they don't all make their blocks, Dowdle would've at least had 20 yards or more. But given how the Panthers had the numbers advantage (six including Dowdle to four with one being blocked actively), there's a good chance the running back scores here.

Either way, this puts them in easy field goal range, much closer than they ended up being. That was at least a three-point swing, and the Panthers lost by two points.

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