PHOENIX - In the wake of possibly the most egregious missed pass interference call in football history, the NFL decided to do something about it.
Nearly every team in the league voted to allow review on pass interference calls, and non-calls, in the final minutes of a game. 31 out of 32 teams voted for the new rule, a rare near sign of unanimity in a league full of competing agendas.
For the Redskins, it was obvious.
“Everybody, without a doubt, wants the game called properly. We don't want to see something like what happened in the New Orleans game and the Rams game,” Washington head coach Jay Gruden said of the rule change.
And while the focus will remain on the Saints getting jobbed out of a Super Bowl appearance, that rule change might have won the Redskins another game in the 2018 season as well.
When Washington hosted the Texans in November, both teams were in first place. Most fans remember that as the game Alex Smith broke his leg, but late in the contest, Colt McCoy led a furious comeback attempt.
On one of the final plays of the game, McCoy went deep to Josh Doctson. There was blatant pass interference on the play, but no flag got thrown.
The Redskins lost.
Couple people asked to see if there was a potential defensive pass interference on the deep ball to Josh Doctson on 3rd down. Here's the clip. #Redskins pic.twitter.com/wkelVov7xc
— Mark Bullock (@MarkBullockNFL) November 18, 2018
“No I did not,” Gruden answered when asked if he remembered the end of that game fondly.
“That's the whole thing you're trying to avoid. You're trying to get these calls right.”
Gruden’s team didn’t lose only because of that missed call, but if the correct ruling came down, it might have changed the outcome.
In 2019, that problem should be fixed.
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