{"id":2518973,"date":"2025-12-08T21:17:02","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T02:17:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-is-this-is-a-touchdown-clear-as-mud-rules-trigger-nfl-controversy\/"},"modified":"2025-12-08T21:19:16","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T02:19:16","slug":"watch-is-this-is-a-touchdown-clear-as-mud-rules-trigger-nfl-controversy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-is-this-is-a-touchdown-clear-as-mud-rules-trigger-nfl-controversy\/","title":{"rendered":"Watch: Is This Is a Touchdown? &#8216;Clear As Mud&#8217; Rules Trigger NFL Controversy"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwatch-is-this-is-a-touchdown-clear-as-mud-rules-trigger-nfl-controversy%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2518973&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses the frustration among Baltimore Ravens fans and head coach John Harbaugh following a controversial overturned touchdown in their game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.The pivotal moment involved Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely, who appeared to complete a catch with both hands on the ball and two feet down in the end zone, only for the referees to rule it incomplete after Steelers&#8217; defender Joey porter Jr. knocked the ball away before Likely could perform &#8220;an act common to the game.&#8221; NFL officials defended the call based on current catch rules, but many analysts and fans argued the decision was inconsistent with past rulings. The <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >controversy highlights ongoing criticism<\/a> of the NFL&#8217;s officiating consistency, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-muslim-socialist-zohran-mamdani-elected-mayor-of-new-york-city\/\" title=\"Breaking: Muslim Socialist Zohran Mamdani Elected Mayor of New York City\">including concerns voiced<\/a> by former coach Tony Dungy about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nfl-refs-on-the-hot-seat-after-back-to-back-weeks-of-badly-missed-calls-is-it-3-weeks-now\/\" title=\"NFL refs under fire for consecutive weeks of major missed calls - Is it now three weeks?\">pass interference calls<\/a>. The article also notes growing skepticism about the league&#8217;s relationship with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nba-drops-marijuana-testing-penalties-under-tentative-labor-agreement\/\" title=\"NBA Drops Marijuana Testing, Penalties Under Tentative Labor Agreement\">sports betting companies<\/a> and fears that inconsistent officiating may continue to fuel fan outrage.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_1)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Most sports fans have accepted that all sports officials and referees are prone to human error.<\/p>\n<p>Mistakes happen, period. But when &ldquo;mistakes&rdquo; just look like raw inconsistency? Fans have a little tougher time accepting that.<\/p>\n<p>The Baltimore Ravens hosted the Pittsburgh Steelers in a game on Sunday, in what was effectively a contest for sole possession of first place in the AFC North.<\/p>\n<p>The Ravens lost at home 27-22, giving their hated rival Steelers the division lead &mdash; for now.<\/p>\n<p>But many Ravens fans &mdash; and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nfl-coaching-legend-blasts-massive-issue-he-saw-while-watching-thanksgiving-games\/\" title=\"NFL Coaching Legend Blasts Massive Issue He Saw While Watching Thanksgiving ...s\">head coach &#038;mdash<\/a>; are having a tough time accepting that loss after a controversial call effectively wiped at least 6 points off the board.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>The key play came when Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson found tight end Isaiah Likely in the endzone for what many assumed was the go-ahead touchdown.<\/p>\n<p>Likely had seemingly checked off all the prerequisites of what constitutes a catch: He had both hands on the ball, and two feet down.<\/p>\n<p>After he got that second foot down, however, Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. knocked it out of his extended grasp.<\/p>\n<p>Upon review, the referees would overturn the crucial touchdown.<\/p>\n<p>You can watch the play in question &mdash; and some stunned analysis &mdash; below:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Isiah Likely&rsquo;s TD Being Overturned is Absolutely Insane &#128556; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/yi4NqXRm9f\">pic.twitter.com\/yi4NqXRm9f<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Underdog Fantasy &ndash; Josh &amp; Hayden (@UDFootballShow) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/UDFootballShow\/status\/1998135789071618157?\">December 8, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>NFL Vice President of Instant Replay Mark Butterworth proffered the following explanation, per <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/sports\/ravens-john-harbaugh-calls-nfl-catch-rule-as-clear-mud-after-overturned-touchdown-leads-crucial-loss\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fox News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The receiver controlled the ball in the air, had his right foot down, then his left foot down,&rdquo; Butterworth said. &ldquo;The control is the first aspect of the catch. The second aspect is two feet or a body part in bounds, which he did have. Then, the third step is an act common to the game and before he could get the third foot down, the ball was ripped out. Therefore, it was an incomplete pass.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Many, including the above pundits, argued that extending your arms to keep the ball away from the defender should&rsquo;ve satisfied the &ldquo;an act common to the game&rdquo; (commonly referred to as &ldquo;making a football move&rdquo;) rule.<\/p>\n<p>The referees obviously don&rsquo;t think Likely did, and Ravens head coach John Harbaugh is still unhappy about it a day later.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Do I think it needs more clarification? Yeah,&rdquo; Harbaugh told reporters, according to Fox News. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s about as clear as mud right now. That&rsquo;s how I feel about it.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Social media erupted with examples similar to Likely&rsquo;s catch, except that these were ruled in the positive:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">After comparing these two plays, I think the NFL might be picking definitions out of a hat. AJ Brown=TD, Isiah Likely=incomplete. What is a catch? <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Fhf1QB1EQQ\">pic.twitter.com\/Fhf1QB1EQQ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Cover Pending (@CoverPending) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CoverPending\/status\/1998044644421283977?\">December 8, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>But it&rsquo;s not just random X accounts pillorying this move.<\/p>\n<p>Right after the Thanksgiving day NFL slate, legendary former NFL head coach Tony Dungy <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/nfl-coaching-legend-blasts-massive-issue-saw-watching-thanksgiving-games\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ripped<\/a> into the league for the inconsistency with how it calls pass interference penalties.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;When you watch NFL football all day long you just come to the conclusion our officials don&rsquo;t know what pass interference is,&rdquo; Dungy bemoaned on social media. &ldquo;We tried making it reviewable a couple of years ago and that didn&rsquo;t help.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>He added, &ldquo;But these are monster penalties that are not called consistently at all.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>An unspoken undercurrent through all of these criticisms is the fact that the NFL is incredibly cozy with various sports betting sites.<\/p>\n<p>And if the NFL will continue to work with the sports books, these criticisms about inconsistent officiating are only going to get louder &mdash; and angrier.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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However, when these &#8220;errors&#8221; seem like blatant inconsistency, fans find it harder to accept. On Sunday, the Baltimore Ravens played the Pittsburgh Steelers in a game that essentially decided first place in the AFC North<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2518974,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2025-12-08T204009.532.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[5541,7215,68461],"class_list":["post-2518973","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-football","tag-nfl","tag-rules-controversy"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2025-12-08T204009.532.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2518973","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2518973"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2518973\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2518977,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2518973\/revisions\/2518977"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2518974"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2518973"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2518973"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2518973"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}