For the Wild Card matchup between the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles, Energy was high in Lincoln financial field for both teams as Jake Elliot kicked off for the hosts.
Packer returned Keisean Nixon brought it out from one yard deep in the end zone, but at the 27 yard line a massive hit jarred the ball loose.
The Packers fumble the ball on the kickoff 👀 pic.twitter.com/M4ZAwWA5BA
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) January 12, 2025
Disaster for Green Bay Packers
A scrum ensued to claim the opening possession, a pile of green and white jerseys. On the field officials ruled the Eagles recovered the ball. It was a Philadelphia player who came out of the pile with it.
Nixon, however, seemed to control the ball while clearly down. It appeared that the Eagles defender then ripped the ball away from him, gathering it into his own possession before a pile of bodies obscured the rest of the play.
Maybe officials deemed any movement while in his hands indicated a lack of control, leaving the opposing team free to snatch it away. A decision could go either way. Perhaps the ball was moving just enough.
One X user presented a theory:
The Packers recovered that fumble but only if you consider every available replay angle.
— Cousin Sal (@TheCousinSal) January 12, 2025
To make sure of the call, the play went into review. In the FOX broadcast booth, reviewing the replays being played on the big screen, including a top-down view unavailable to officials live, Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady were undecided. Brady seemed to lean toward ruling the play a fumble.
The Verdict
On replay review, crew chief Brad Allen announced that the play stood as called. The Philly crowd erupted, and they had reason to erupt again three plays later, when the Eagles found the end zone on an 11 yd td pass from Jalen Hurts to receiver Jahan Dotson. 7-0, Philadelphia. It was a rough way for the Packers to start the first 1:39 of the game.
“Down by contact isn’t a thing I guess,” another fan concluded. That is one way to explain it. Whether or not the right call was made, many Packers fans had to be left rubbing their eyes to clarify their vision and try to comprehend the upheld call.
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