Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Doug Farrar

Bad officiating cheats Packers on Kenny Pickett’s backward pass

Rule 8, Section 7, Article 1 of the NFL Rule Book states that “A runner may throw a backward pass at any time. Players of either team may advance after catching a backward pass, or recovering a backward pass after it touches the ground.”

Apparently, referee Scott Novak’s crew didn’t get the memo in Sunday’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers. With 3:34 left in the first half, Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett pretty clearly threw a backward pass to running back Jaylen Warren. The play was ruled an incomplete forward pass, the Packers reviewed it. and the call was upheld.

Broadcaster Charles Davis had a serious problem with that, and Davis was not wrong. Rules analyst and former NFL referee Gene Steratore tried to state a contrary case, but there’s only so much you can gloss over stuff like this.

I dunno, Gene… it looked pretty clear right away from this angle.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.