Ravens Insider: NFL exec on reversal of Ravens’ Isaiah Likely TD: ‘That was interesting’

[ExtremeRavens]

Just over two weeks after the NFL season came to a close, the league is ready to admit its mistakes.

There were five instant replay reviews that officials got wrong in real time, NFL executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent told Mark Maske, formerly of The Washington Post. Tight end Isaiah Likely’s would-be game-winning touchdown catch against Pittsburgh in Week 14 was not one of them, but it did get the league’s attention.

Vincent told Maske on Tuesday that it was one of a few plays league officials discussed at length. Despite ire from fans and disagreement from players, the NFL’s stance is that they could not confidently say that replay officials got it wrong.

“There was two plays in particular,” Vincent said. “There was the Likely play … Ravens-Steelers in the end zone. And then you had the one — there was a Jets play. But it was the Likely play that you go, ‘That was interesting because of the third step and they were talking about the ball extended out.’ So it was: What constitutes that third act?”

There were just under three minutes left in that early December game. Jackson found Likely in the back of the end zone. The 25-year-old held the ball out in front of him and took two steps before Steelers defensive back Joey Porter Jr. jarred it loose. It was ruled a touchdown on the field and overturned after replay review.

NFL vice president of instant replay Mark Butterworth said in the pool report that Likely obtained control and had both feet in bounds. However, he did not make an “act common to the game” afterward, which would have been planting a third step.

After having a night to sleep on it, former Ravens coach John Harbaugh said that the league’s definition of a catch is “clear as mud.”

Vincent did not say conclusively that the replay review was wrong or that the on-field call should have stood. Rather, the league felt that it warranted discussion about the merit of a catch but ultimately stuck by the final call.

To play the what-if game: If that touchdown had counted, it’s more likely that the Ravens would have won, which would have put them in sole possession of first place in the AFC North with four regular-season games remaining. Baltimore lost the regular-season finale at Pittsburgh after Tyler Loop missed a game-winning field goal attempt in the final seconds, giving the Steelers the division title.

Vincent said that there were 171 regular-season plays reviewed by the replay booth. The overwhelming majority, he said, the NFL feels confident that officials got right. There was another play from earlier in that same Ravens-Steelers game that was part of the final five in which the NFL would like a do-over.

Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw a pass that was batted at the line of scrimmage back toward his hands. As he grabbed the ball, so did rookie linebacker Teddye Buchanan. The two fought for possession. Officials on the field ruled it an interception. After replay review, they gave Pittsburgh the upper hand, stating that Rodgers had possession and his knee was down.

The NFL admitted its fault on that play, a league spokesperson confirmed to Pro Football Talk, which was a significant momentum swing for the Steelers.

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A day after that game, the NFL league office called Harbaugh to lament another officiating mistake.

In the second quarter, Ravens defensive tackle Travis Jones was flagged for unnecessary roughness. Jones charged the gap beside Steelers long snapper Christian Kuntz on a field goal attempt. Officials deemed it unnecessary against a defenseless player. NFL rules analyst and club communications liaison Walt Anderson and senior vice president of officiating administration Perry Fewell called to tell Harbaugh “it should not have been called.”

The play resulted in a Steelers first down and they scored a touchdown the next play, taking a 17-3 lead rather than a 13-3 lead in a game Pittsburgh eventually won 27-22.

“So technically we won?” Lamar Jackson asked jokingly on X on Tuesday. “10-7 1st offseason win ever.”

Have a news tip? Contact Sam Cohn at scohn@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/samdcohn.x.com. Sam appears as a host on The Sun’s “Early Birds” podcast.

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