Why the Titans' epic 'volleyball' interception vs. the Chargers counted

Joe Rivera

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Why the Titans' epic 'volleyball' interception vs. the Chargers counted image

Soccer, football, volleyball — it was all happening on Sunday afternoon.

Hours after Leo Messi and Argentina earned the country's third World Cup final victory, the United States was treated to a rousing volleyball match during Chargers vs. Titans.

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Titans defensive backs Roger McCreary and Joshua Kalu combined for a volleyball-adjacent interception of Justin Herbert in the second quarter of their Week 15 matchup, capturing the attention of the NFL viewing public:

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Of course, the NFL has all sorts of rules regarding the batting of balls and the like, so there was some question as to whether the play was, in fact, legal. There are several aspects to the play:

— McCreary had control of the ball — despite not having "possession" — so had he batted it forward, it would have been an illegal forward pass, per the CBS broadcast.

— Had McCreary deflected the ball (i.e., a batted ball), it wouldn't have been subject to those rules. Replay showed that McCreary had control of the ball and lateraled it to Kalu. So, no "tip drill" here.

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— There's also debate as to whether a player can actually throw a pass despite not having true possession — two feet down with control. That wasn't the case here.

Former NFL referee and current CBS rules analyst Gene Steratore explained why the play was legal:

Because the ball was lateraled back into play sideways, not forward (though there's some debate about that, too), the play was allowed to stand. The Titans and the Chargers entered the fourth quarter tied 7-7.

Whatever the case may be, the "rule of cool" reigned at least briefly in the No Fun League.

Joe Rivera

Joe Rivera Photo

Joe Rivera is in his seventh year with The Sporting News, handling NFL, MLB and some things pro wrestling. A proud-ish Rutgers University graduate, Rivera combines a new-school flair with an old-school soul. He loves dingers, wrestling, comic books, movies, music and really bad puns. He is also a card-carrying BBWAA member and teaches Multimedia Sports Reporting at his alma mater.

You can find him and tweet him @JoeRiveraSN, if you're into that sort of thing.