Historic catches that wouldn't be catches today

[luckyshow]

I vaguely recall mid 60s, when I was a kid. Giants v Redskins. Washington won on a pass into the end zone called a TD when the receiver only had it for a split second. I think today it would be incomplete. But I have no memory of details. Just that a big deal was made of it in the (New York) newspapers the next day... A very big deal.

[BD Sullivan]

The Gray TD in the '75 MNF tilt between Washington and St. Louis was an awful call. It is arguably the worst call of all time.

The game was a late Sunday game, not on MNF.

[Byron]

The difficulty with the "football act" part of the equation is that the football act has to be completed. Bryant lost the ball during the football act, if you interpret it that way. But I don't even think that's true; he was coming down with the ball in only one hand, and that hand was on top of the ball. Of course he lost the ball when it hit the ground; he didn't have control of it.

He had control prior to it hitting the ground. The ball was "cupped" in his hand and forearm after he grabbed it with two hands and shifted it to one.

[JohnR]

[quote="Byron")

He had control prior to it hitting the ground. The ball was "cupped" in his hand and forearm after he grabbed it with two hands and shifted it to one.[/quote]

The ground cannot cause a fumble, but it can cause an incompletion.

[King Kong]

The Gray TD in the '75 MNF tilt between Washington and St. Louis was an awful call. It is arguably the worst call of all time.

The game was a late Sunday game, not on MNF.

It was? Jeez.

Question to self. I never looked that up???

I always heard that it was Monday night game.

[Evan]

I have a theory that the receiver gloves make this situation worse. The gloves enable a receiver to stop the ball, preventing it from slipping through their hands. But it adds an extra layer of material between the receiver's hand muscles and the ball, making it in my opinion harder for a receiver to exert their muscles on the ball and control the ball firmly, especially when analyzed in super slo-mo, pixel by pixel. The ball seems to be more likely to shift ever so slightly, creating a doubt about control, when it has gloves mushing around it. It seemed like with bare hands, receivers could more convincingly and firmly catch and control the ball. Anyway, maybe I'm seeing things, but it's just my theory.