NFL catch rule spoils Keelan Cole's Catch of the Year candidate in Jets vs. Bengals

Jacob Camenker

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NFL catch rule spoils Keelan Cole's Catch of the Year candidate in Jets vs. Bengals image

Keelan Cole made what appeared to be an amazing catch during the Jets' Week 8 game against the Bengals on Sunday.

Mike White threw a pass to Cole in the left corner of the end zone. Cole was only able to get one hand on it, but he still pulled it in. The play was ruled a touchdown and looked like a catch-of-the-year candidate thanks to Cole's acrobatics.

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There was just one problem. It wasn't actually a catch.

Upon further review, the referees reversed the call of catch. Why? Because Cole briefly lost control of the ball going to the ground.

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As Cole touched down in the end zone, the ball began to slide down his body. He was able to secure it shortly after it moved, but by that point, he had already rolled out of bounds. As such, the call was overturned.

The Jets were still able to score on the drive. White found Braxton Berrios just moments later for a touchdown in virtually the same location as Cole.

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The ball slightly shifted in Berrios' hands while he went out of bounds, so it looked like the Jets may, ironically, suffer the same fate that they did on the Cole play. However, after a brief review, the replay booth chose to uphold the call.

Jacob Camenker

Jacob Camenker Photo

Jacob Camenker first joined The Sporting News as a fantasy football intern in 2018 after his graduation from UMass. He became a full-time employee with TSN in 2021 and now serves as a senior content producer with a particular focus on the NFL. Jacob worked at NBC Sports Boston as a content producer from 2019 to 2021. He is an avid fan of the NFL Draft and ranked 10th in FantasyPros’ Mock Draft Accuracy metric in both 2021 and 2022.