NFL fans were left puzzled after a controversial call in Saturday’s Chargers-Patriots showdown.
Cameron Dicker kicked a 38-yard field goal for the Los Angeles Chargers in the final seconds of the first half.
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But the kick looked incredibly close to sailing wide of the upright at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts.
NFL Network was broadcasting the Saturday afternoon game.
And some replay angles appeared to show the ball go wide of the upright.
Announcers Chris Rose and Ross Tucker both cast their doubts on whether the ball actually made it through.
New England Patriots fans in the stadium booed after seeing replays on the big screen.
“The crowd is reacting to seeing it on the big board — they don’t think it was good,” Rose said on NFL Network.
The broadcaster drafted in former referee turned rules analyst Gene Steratore for the day.
Steratore usually appears on CBS – but he worked the Christmas Day games for Netflix as well as Saturday’s NFL Network special.
And Steratore cleared up a little-known rule about successful field goals.
“In the NFL, the entire football must go inside the outside part of the upright,” Steratore said.
“So the upright can be involved, but the entire football must go inside the outside of the upright.
“As you guys can see, even with this angle, it’s very difficult to tell where that football is when it does get to right where the upright is.”
The confusion came from Dicker’s kick going directly over the top of the upright, rather than to either side of it.
The official placed directly under the upright glanced over to his colleague on the other goal post before signalling that Dicker’s kick was good.
“Those are not as easy as people think,” Steratore added.
“That’s a tough call sometimes.”
The NFL Network play callers then questioned whether the uprights should be made taller.
Any controversy surrounding the kick mattered little to the final result.
The Los Angeles Chargers ran out dominant 40-7 winners.
The comfortable victory moved LA to 10-6 and sealed a spot in the playoffs.
