LIONS LOSE HEARTBREAKER
Detroit receiver Golden Tate cradles the ball for what appeared to be a game-winning catch late in the fourth quarter at Ford Field on Sunday afternoon. The play was originally ruled a touchdown but was overturned after the officials reviewed the play, handing the Atlanta Falcons a 30-26 victory over the Lions.
DETROIT The Atlanta Falcons escaped Detroit, holding on for a win thanks in part to an NFL rule that went in their favour.
Matthew Stafford’s pass to Golden Tate was ruled to be just short of the end zone in the final seconds after a review, allowing Atlanta to beat the Lions 30-26 on Sunday.
The call on the field was a touchdown when Stafford connected with Tate on a slant from the oneyard line with eight seconds left, but it was overturned because the receiver was down before the football reached the goal-line. By the rule, 10 seconds had to run off the clock, and that ended the game because Detroit didn’t have any time outs.
“Had the call on the field been correct initially, the clock would have run out,” Fox analyst Dean Blandino, an ex-NFL officiating chief, explained in a tweet. “That’s the spirit of the rule.”
Lions head coach Jim Caldwell agreed the call was made correctly and the rule was applied properly. He added, though, that Stafford could have taken another snap if the call on the field was made correctly initially, that Tate was down inside the one-yard line.
“Certainly,” Caldwell said. “We practise it all the time.”
Atlanta cornerback Marcus Trufant, who extended Detroit’s last drive with two penalties, was unaware of the rule that proved to be favourable for the Falcons.
“I thought we were going to have to play another down,” Trufant said.
The defending NFC champion Falcons (3-0) overcame Matt Ryan’s three interceptions and many other mistakes.
Meanwhile, Detroit (2-1) never led in the game, and failed to pull off another comeback in the fourth quarter.
“I wish I could have got us in,” Stafford said. “It’s kind of what I do, and I didn’t get it done.”
END OF A STREAK
Ryan hadn’t thrown an interception in nine games, including three games during the last postseason, before getting picked off three times at Ford Field. Safety Glover Quin stepped in front of one pass and returned it 37 yards for a score in the second quarter.
RUNNING FREE
Devonta Freeman scored on a one-yard run to put Atlanta up 17-3 in the second quarter and finished with 106 rushing yards — 35 more than Detroit’s entire team had on the ground.
BY THE NUMBERS
Stafford was 25 of 45 for 264 yards and an 11-yard TD pass to Tate in the third quarter that cut Atlanta’s lead to 23-20. Ameer Abdullah had 14 carries for 47 yards. Detroit’s Darius Slay picked off two passes, matching his total number of interceptions in each of the previous three seasons.