Captain Fear
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- Mar 20, 2019
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USA TODAY Sports
The chances for the New York Giants to finish off an upset of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ended when a flag thrown for pass interference on a two-point conversion inside the final minute was waved off by officials.
Buccaneers defensive back Antoine Winfield Jr. collided with Giants running back Dion Lewis at the goal line just prior to the pass from Daniel Jones arriving. The throw itself from Jones was late and behind its intended target and Winfield came together with Lewis as he slowed to adjust to the pass.
In the pool report given to Tom Rock of Newsday following the game, referee Brad Rogers explained why the members of his crew elected to pick up the flag for pass interference.
“The side judge (Eugene Hall) had the flag thrown on the play and came to the down judge (Jerod Phillips) who was on that side of the goal line,” Rogers said. “The communication between the side judge and the down judge was that the defender contacted the receiver simultaneously as the ball came in. And in order to have pass interference, it has to be clearly early or hinder the receiver’s ability to make the catch.
“You want to make sure it meets the qualifications for pass interference. And in our communication on the field, the down judge and the side judge communicated about the action and believed that it was appropriate to pick that flag up.”
If enforced, the Giants would have had another crack at the conversion from the 1-yard line to tie the game at 25-25 and force overtime. Instead, they fell two points short after holding a 14-3 lead in the second quarter.