Dez Bryant Catch: Why The Dallas Cowboys Were Denied A NFL Play-Off Victory

Dez Bryant Catch - A referee's call in the game between the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys on Sunday has led to a wild debate and may eventually cause some rules in the game to be changed.

It was about 5 minutes to the end of the game when Tony Romo made a dashing pass to Dez Bryant, who was stationed just a yard from the touch-down.

Bryant, who has impressed with his catching this season, leapt over a tackler to grab the 31-yard pass in the air. But as he landed the impact of his arms on the ground caused the ball to momentarily slips away from him, but he quickly grabs it.

At first, it seems referee Gene Steratore had ruled the Dez Bryant catch to be a complete pass. But then Packers coach Mike McCarthy challenged the decision and got it overturned. Steratore consulted his assistants and reviewed footages of the play before cancelling the pass.

Steratore has explained his reason for cancelling the Dez Bryant catch. He said, according to NFL rules, a player "must maintain possession of the football throughout the entire process of the catch."

"at the time he lands and the ball hits the ground, it comes loose as it hits the ground, which would make that incomplete, although he repossesses it, it does contact the ground when he reaches so the repossession is irrelevant because it was ruled an incomplete pass when we had the ball hit the ground," Steratore explains.

The cancellation of the Dez Bryant catch had an immediate dampening effect on the Cowboys - who were literally just a yard from victory. Bryant, who looked distraught after his catch was cancelled, told the press that the pass - which would have given the Cowboys the opportunity to lead the game - was 'taken away'.

Several notable personalities in the sport, including Cowboys coach Jason Garrett NFL former head of officiating Mike Pereira, have challenged the Steratore's decision.

The Dez Bryant catch controversy has made the headlines and gone viral. NFL's vice president of officiating Dean Blandino, who noted that indeed the Dez Bryant catch seemed legitimate, has vowed to bring the issue up with the competition committee.

Nonetheless, he said Steratore's decision must stand because any decision made on the Dez Bryant catch would be extended to other similar instances. "It's about consistency," he explained. "If we make that a catch, we have to look at all these other plays where receivers go to the ground and where do we draw the line?"

Tags

Green Bay Packers, Dallas Cowboys