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Technology is a wonderful thing.
That is, until it stops working.
It appears that’s what happened to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday late in their overtime loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
LA led for much of the contest. But a 21-yard touchdown pass from Lamar Jackson to Zay Flowers with 1:16 remaining in the fourth quarter gave the Ravens a 31-28 lead.
The Rams then took the ball and quickly began marching down the field for either the tying field goal or potential game-winning touchdown.
They entered the red zone with just over 30 seconds remaining before an incomplete pass from Matthew Stafford made it 3rd-and-6 from the Baltimore 18-yard line with 22 seconds remaining.
With the incomplete pass, the clock stopped. But Los Angeles still had to use its final timeout of the contest as it struggled to communicate the play call from head coach Sean McVay to Stafford.
As it turned out, neither party was to blame for the miscommunication.
Technological Issue Costs Rams In Late-Game Drive Against Ravens
“There were some issues with the headsets today where with 16 seconds left, you don’t want to have to use that timeout, but he couldn’t hear me,” McVay told reporters. “You’re going to have to go backwards, so then that limits some of your options.”
Stafford then clarified that while the headsets did not go out completely, he couldn’t hear McVay’s call.
“It’s my fault,” he told ESPN. “I just got to hear it a little bit better. Same play actually got us kind of twice today, just hearing it through there.”
He then threw an incomplete pass on third down and the Rams kicked a game-tying field goal to send the game to overtime.
In over, Ravens backup Tylan Wallace won the game on a controversial walk-off punt return.
Would the result have changed with the extra timeout? Who knows.
But it certainly would’ve given McVay far more options as a play caller.