The NFL’s curious decision to overturn a touchdown reception by Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely reintroduced needless confusion into the question of what a catch is, and what a catch isn’t.
Adding to that confusion, indirectly, was last night’s failure to overturn the ruling on the field that Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts had possession of the ball long enough to fumble it. (It didn’t matter to the outcome of the play, since the Chargers recovered the ball. But if it had trickled out of bounds, the ruling that Hurts had the ball long enough to fumble it would have determined which team was awarded possession.)
The possession rule is virtually identical to the catch rule. From Rule 3, Section 1, Article 7 (Player Possession): “To gain possession of a loose ball that has been caught, intercepted, or recovered, a player (a) must have complete control of the ball with his hands or arms and (b) have both feet or any other part of his body, other than his hands, completely on the ground inbounds, and, after (a) and (b) have been fulfilled, clearly perform any act common to the game (e.g., extend the ball forward, take an additional step, tuck the ball away and turn upfield, or avoid or ward off an opponent). It is not necessary that he commit such an act, provided that he maintains control of the ball long enough to do so.”
Watch the play. If Hurts possessed the ball long enough to fumble it, Likely had it long enough to catch it.
Also, and as previously explained, if Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers had the ball long enough to complete the process of catching it, Likely had it long enough to catch it. (It’s impossible to reconcile the two rulings, and the NFL knows it.)
Bottom line? It took the NFL years to create the impression that it has finally figured out what a catch is. In one fell swoop on a December afternoon in Baltimore, the league has thrown the entire question back into the “who the hell knows?” category.
Congratulations.
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts did something on Monday night that may never have happened before in the NFL: He turned the ball over twice on one play.
In the second quarter, a Hurts pass was intercepted by Chargers defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand. After returning the interception seven yards, Hand fumbled and Hurts picked it up. Hurts then fumbled it almost immediately after establishing possession and it was recovered by Chargers defensive back Troy Dye.
So that was both an interception and a lost fumble by Hurts, on the same play.
Complete and accurate play-by-play statistics for the NFL only go back to 1978, but since then, Hurts is the only player ever to record two turnovers on one play.
If Hurts had otherwise played well and the Eagles had won, that stat would go down as mostly a curiosity. But Hurts had three other interceptions in the game, the last of which sealed the Eagles’ loss in overtime. It was an ugly game for Hurts, for a lot more reasons than just one ugly play.
In the lead up to Monday night’s matchup between the Eagles and Chargers, a report from ESPN indicated that Philadelphia head coach Nick Sirianni had been more involved in the team’s offensive preparation.
Sirianni had been more vocal in the team’s offensive meetings while also taking a larger role at the start of said meetings before turning things over to first-year coordinator Kevin Patullo.
The results didn’t work out for Philadelphia on Monday night, with Jalen Hurts turning in the first five-giveaway performance of his career in the 22-19 overtime loss. But Sirianni effectively confirmed the report after the game, adding that he’ll continue to spend more time with the offense.
“I’m the head coach, so my attention goes to places that I feel like it needs to go,” Sirianni said. “This week was with the offense, and I’ll continue to go in there with those guys and grind it out through the weeds with them and continue to move forward with that.”
Philadelphia finished with 365 total yards, 19 first downs, and 4-of-13 on third down. The club averaged 5.5 yards per play.
But Hurts’ five turnovers undoubtedly derailed the offense.
“I thought we moved the ball and did a lot of good things today,” Sirianni said. “But we didn’t finish drives … for multiple reasons and had some turnovers for multiple reasons. So, you always look to improve the process and we’ll get back to work and grind out through it again. And, yeah, I anticipate being in there still.”
Sirianni added that he doesn’t anticipate making any more changes to roles, staffing, or personnel.
“We’ll stay the course,” Sirianni said.
The Eagles will try to end their three-game losing streak on Sunday at home against the Raiders.
Ten months ago today, Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts met in the Super Bowl. They’ll never forget that night in New Orleans.
They’d surely love to forget the two night games that capped Week 14.
On Sunday night, Mahomes threw three interceptions and accounted for no touchdowns in a 20-10 loss to the Texans. On Monday night, Hurts had four interceptions, a lost fumble, and no touchdowns in a 22-19 overtime loss to the Chargers.
That’s eight total turnovers in one weekend for the two most recent Super Bowl quarterbacks.
Mahomes completed 14 of 33 passes for 160 yards and three picks against Houston. Hurts completed 21 of 40 throws for 240 yards and four interceptions against L.A.. Putting their numbers together, it’s a combined passer rating of 25.29.
The Chiefs, at 6-7, face a steep uphill climb to get back to the playoffs. And the Eagles are no lock. If they don’t end their three-game losing streak soon, they could get swept right out of the NFC field. Which means that both Super Bowl teams could potentially fail to qualify for the postseason.
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts had a particularly ugly performance in Monday night’s 22-19 overtime loss to the Chargers.
He finished the night 21-of-40 passing for 240 yards with four interceptions and a lost fumble, setting a new career high with four picks and five total giveaways. Of course, the last interception was the most consequential, as the Eagles were in a strong position to at least tie the game if not win it before Cam Hart tipped a pass that Tony Jefferson picked off to end the contest.
“I knew it was going to be a tight-window throw,” Hurts said postgame of the last interception. “I’d have to watch the film to see it from the film’s point of view. Ultimately, it’s a play that I didn’t make. He got a hand on the ball and I didn’t make the play.
“That’s a play that we’ve made a million times in that scenario versus a cloud corner and I didn’t make that play this time around.”
Generally, Hurts said he had too many turnovers, which was a clear factor in the loss. As a player who has not turned the ball over much throughout his career, Hurts uncharacteristically now has seven giveaways in his last two games.
Is this an outlier or a trend?
“That’s for everyone else to determine,” Hurts said. “For me, we lost the game and I didn’t play well enough to help us win the game. And so, I look at it like I look at every game in terms of win or loss — how I respond to what the game presented [in] itself. So, that’s my mentality.”
With the Eagles having lost each of their last three games, Hurts wants to make sure he’s leading the team to be as resilient as possible moving forward. Philadelphia will begin the last quarter of the season by hosting the Raiders next Sunday afternoon.
“I think winning is a point of pride to me. That’s why we play the game. And I’ve got to find ways to lead our team to victories,” Hurts said. “It’s not something that’s foreign to us. We’re just not able to do it at the moment. It starts with me and how I play, how I lead, and how I go out there and do my job. So, when I look at it, at any point, it’s about how I respond to a test — how I respond to it and what level of resilience and resolve I have to push forward and figure things out.
“[I]t definitely stings, definitely stings,” Hurts added. “But, how do you respond? And that’s the only way I know how to look at it. Again, you’re going to see what type of resolve [this team has] — what’s in us to respond the way we want to. So, we’ve just got to dig.”
