Before we go on here, let me say it out loud: I’m NOT giving referee Brad Allen a pass here for what happened at the end of the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys game on Saturday.
Video shows that Taylor Decker had some kind of conversation with Allen right before the Lions ran the two-point conversion that led to Decker catching a pass, but being whistled for illegal touching and negating what could have been the game-winning play.
But it was after that conversation in which Decker claimed he, not No. 70 Dan Skipper, had declared himself eligible as a receiver that Allen announced — as he’s supposed to — over the loudspeakers that No. 70 is eligible.
Here’s the audio:
Here’s audio from @DallasCowboys radio broadcast on @1053thefan:
Referee Brad Allen announces to the entire stadium & tells Dallas defense prior to the Lions 2-point try that #70 Dan Skipper reported as eligible, no mention of #68 Taylor Decker. pic.twitter.com/4fodu6puLf— Bill Jones (@CBS11BillJones) December 31, 2023
Here is audio of the #Lions OL reporting in as eligible. You can hear #70 reports as the eligible receiver in the back.
pic.twitter.com/Vbg12xRfyt— NFLCentral (@NFLTrenchBattle) December 31, 2023
Should the Lions have done something with this if they had indeed heard it? Again, it feels like Decker did what he was supposed to do but Skipper — running in from the sidelines — was the one declared eligible, and maybe there was no time to correct what might have been Allen’s error.
