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The New Orleans Saints fell to the Washington Commanders 20-19 on Sunday. They had opportunity to win the ball game on their final drive.
Trailing 20-13, Spencer Rattler drove the offense down the field in pursuit of a game-tying or go-ahead score. He’d be successful in finding the endzone thanks to some help from the NFL officiating crew.
As the Saints moved the ball down near Washington’s goal line on their final possession, many viewing from home noticed a clock malfunction. Rattler completed a pass to Foster Moreau at the one-yard line. With no timeouts, New Orleans was unable to stop the clock.
Moreau was tackled with 11 seconds left in the game. For some reason, the clock briefly paused at nine seconds before continuing again. Rattler was able to line the offense up and spike the ball with three seconds left. It gave the Saints one last chance at a touchdown.
Egregious mistake here pic.twitter.com/zqQe4KNp6Q
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) December 15, 2024
New Orleans would score on the very next play to make the score 20-19. They missed an ensuing two-point conversion to lose the game.
After the fact, that clock malfunction was top of mind. The referees were asked about the situation, saying there wasn’t much they could do about the delay.
“The covering official mistakenly stopped the clock in that situation. The clock should not have stopped,” said referee Shawn Hochuli. “It is not a situation that is reviewable.”
Most Commanders players didn’t seem to notice the stoppage. Head coach Dan Quinn was asked about the mishap in his postgame press conference.
Dan Quinn on the clock freezing at :09 for a few seconds at the end … pic.twitter.com/uSQGmJFfio
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) December 15, 2024
“I will wait for a response from New York,” he said of a reply from the NFL, “but those seconds were critical.”
Those on the Washington side weren’t particularly happy with how the final seconds played out. Luckily, the error didn’t cost the Commanders the game.