Cowboys executive VP Stephen Jones: Dez Bryant playoff call ‘was correct’
There are two plays from the NFL Playoffs that people are still talking about six months later.
One, of course, was Malcolm Butler’s goal line interception of Russell Wilson that sealed the Super Bowl for the New England Patriots over the Seattle Seahawks. The other is Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant’s controversial no-catch against the Green Bay Packers in the NFL divisional round.
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Though Cowboys fans will forever believe the play should not have been overturned, Stephen Jones, the team’s executive vice president, said Tuesday that he thinks “the call was correct.”
Still, that doesn’t mean Jones believes the rule that caused the play to be overturned shouldn’t be altered.
“Now, going forward is there a better way for some of these players like Dez Bryant or a Calvin Johnson – is there a way to tweak a rule to where you can say, ‘Hey, those guys really caught those footballs and they should be catches even under NFL rules?” Jones said, per ESPN.com.
To refresh your memory, with the Cowboys trailing 26-21 on a fourth down play late in the fourth quarter, Bryant appeared to make a spectacular catch near the goal line to set up first-and-goal.
However, the play was challenged and the call was reversed because Bryant did not technically keep control of the ball throughout the entire catch, despite taking multiple steps before the ball was jarred loose when Bryant reached for the goal line.
After the call was reversed, Green Bay regained possession and ran out the clock to seal the win.
NFL vice president of officiating Dean Blandino met with the Cowboys this offseason to further explain the call. He also reportedly had “lengthy discussions” with Jones, who is a member of the NFL’s competition committee.
“I wanted to make sure that I was in Dallas this year, because obviously it was a controversial play,” Blandino told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
The league decided not to change the rule, but Blandino said Friday that they “tried to clarify it.”
“We really feel that the way the rule is written now, the way it’s being applied, allows us to be as consistent as possible,” Blandino said.
“The message to the coaches and players is if you’re falling to the ground to make the catch, then you have to maintain the control when you land. And if you reach or do anything with the football, that’s not going to trump that requirement to maintain control.”
Jones said he’s satisfied with what he heard from Blandino.
“(A rule change) is for the competition committee and us to continue to look for ways to get better. But I applaud everything that Dean has done,” Jones said per the Dallas Morning News.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
