DawgTalkers.net Forums The Archives 2017 NFL Season Looking Back: Browns 10 Ravens 27 Other Games (Draft Order Edition)

Ok lets take the Pittsburgh/New England game. I don't know if you saw it but Pitt TE Jesse James caught the ball but when he caught it he dove for the end zone and the ball moved in his hands when he hit the ground they called it a catch then reviewed it and saw that it moved in his hands and called it incomplete. Now if he hadn't dove for the end zone and just went down where he caught it the Steelers would have had the ball at the half yard line and probably would have scored a TD and won the game instead they lost all because James tried to score and the ball moved when he doved hands first for the end zone. If he hadn't dove it would have been a catch but because he was trying to score, which is the intent of the game, it was incomplete because the ball moved after his hands hit the ground.

For it to be a catch, the ball can't hit the ground. That has always been the case. If the guy takes 4 steps, falls, and then the ball moves when it hits the ground, it's obviously a catch. If in the process of making the catch the player falls and the ball moves when it hits the ground, it's not a catch.

If a player catches a pass and a defensive player knocks the ball out after a few steps, it's a fumble after a catch. If the defensive player knocks the ball out in the process of the catch, it's incomplete. Same concept with the ground.