Dallas Used Kickoff Loophole Against Chiefs, And Then It Got Weird
The CBS crew failed to fully explain what happened on a bizarre kickoff during the Thanksgiving Day game.
In the midst of an incredible Thanksgiving football game between the Dallas Cowboys and Kansas City Chiefs, a bizarre situation unfolded in the fourth quarter that left many fans scratching their heads. Unfortunately, the CBS broadcast crew never explained what happened.
After the Cowboys scored a touchdown on a pass from Dak Prescott to Javonte Williams, Dallas went for two to increase its lead to seven points. The team converted on a pass to George Pickens (giving Dallas a 28-21 lead) and the Chiefs committed a roughing the passer penalty on the two-point try. Dallas obviously elected to take the penalty on the ensuing kickoff.
That's when things got weird. Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey purposefully kicked the ball out of bounds, and it appeared that Dallas gunner Jalen Tolbert purposefully ran down the field before the kick landed or was caught, both of which are penalties.
Dallas Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey purposely kicked a ball out of bounds against the Kansas City Chiefs, leaving many NFL fans confused.
(Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
CBS rules analyst Gene Steratore said that the Cowboys were using a loophole in the new kickoff format, but didn't explain what that meant. Officials huddled with Chiefs' coaches for a while before announcing that Kansas City declined the kickoff out-of-bounds penalty and accepted the illegal formation penalty on Tolbert. Dallas moved back five yards, re-kicked, and the Chiefs returned the ball to their own 39-yard line.
The situation was incredibly confusing for most fans.
So… What Happened?
I'm going to do my best to explain what I think happened here. Steratore alluded to a loophole in the kickoff rule. When a team kicks the ball out of bounds on a kickoff, the receiving team automatically gets the ball at the 40-yard line (25 yards from the spot of the kick). However, because there was a 15-yard penalty enforced pre-kickoff, that changes the scenario.
In that case, the out-of-bounds kick puts the ball at the 25-yard line. There's no benefit for a team kicking off from the 50-yard line to simply boot the ball into the end zone because that results in a normal touchback (ball at the 35-yard line). There's also no benefit to kicking the ball very high in the air because gunners can't move until the ball is caught.
Thus, the prudent play in this scenario is to kick the ball out of bounds and give the opponent the ball at the 25-yard line with no threat of a return.
What Was Jalen Tolbert Doing?
This is the part I cannot explain. When Steratore mentioned a loophole, I thought he might explain some benefit to purposely taking an illegal formation penalty. But he didn't and, as far as I can tell, there isn't one. So, Tolbert either made a huge mistake, misunderstood the instruction from his coaches, or a coach gave him the wrong instructions.
The NFL introduced a new kickoff procedure last season, so there are still some kinks for teams to work out. For the record, the Cowboys weren't the first to purposely kick the ball out of bounds in this situation. The Pittsburgh Steelers did it earlier this year (without the illegal formation penalty) and the Houston Texans executed the play last year.
The Cowboys almost added their names to that list, but it appears that somehow a wire got crossed somewhere along the line.
Ultimately, it didn't matter. The Cowboys defeated the Chiefs, 31-28.