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NFL Week 13
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Coach Matt LaFleur smirked while saying the referees were right to award the Packers a timeout that led to a touchdown. Nic Antaya / Getty Images
One of the pivotal moments in the Thanksgiving matchup between the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions came late in the second quarter.
The Packers held a 10-7 lead, facing fourth-and-one from just inside the Detroit three-yard line. As the play clock ticked down from two seconds left, Packers right guard Anthony Belton appeared to move before the snap. A couple of flags flew from behind quarterback Jordan Love, indicating a false-start penalty was imminent.
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Instead, the Packers were granted a timeout.
As the referees huddled before announcing the final call, Packers head coach Matt LaFleur gestured and yelled from the sideline, saying, “I called timeout.” The officiating crew agreed, announcing that Green Bay had called the timeout before Belton’s false start.
“(LaFleur) is running in from the left side,” FOX color commentator Tom Brady said as the broadcast reviewed the play following the announcement. “There he is, right there, ‘Timeout, timeout!’”
“He did not get it,” play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt said.
The broadcast crew threw the conversation over to rules analyst Dean Blandino.
“He may be yelling ‘timeout’ and then signaling,” Blandino said. “The official obviously acknowledged it before the false start. The video looks a little bit shaky.”
Brady said it was a “huge” call, which turned out to be the case. Instead of the Packers moving back five yards and potentially settling for a field goal on fourth-and-six, they lined up to go for a touchdown from the two-yard line. Love threw a pass to Romeo Doubs on the next play, putting the Packers up 17-7.
After the game, LaFleur was asked if the officials got the call right.
“Of course, they got it right,” LaFleur said, with a wink and a smirk.
NFL vice president of instant replay Mark Butterworth and referee Ron Torbert spoke with a pool reporter after the game. They were asked what the conversation was that led to the officials granting LaFleur the timeout.
“The timeout was called before the false start,” Torbert said.
Asked at what point the official heard LaFleur ask for a timeout, Torbert only said “before the false start.”
“We talked about it on the field,” Torbert said when asked how they reached that conclusion. “We recognized the timeout called, and that the timeout was called before the false start.”
The Lions responded with a seven-play drive that resulted in a touchdown, cutting the Packers’ lead to 17-14 at the half. Green Bay went on to win 31-24.
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Saad Yousuf is a staff writer covering the NFL. He previously covered the Dallas Cowboys and the Dallas Stars at The Athletic. Saad also works at 96.7/1310 The Ticket in Dallas after five years at ESPN Dallas radio. Prior to The Athletic, Saad covered the Cowboys, Mavericks and a variety of other sports at The Dallas Morning News. Follow Saad on Twitter @SaadYousuf126
