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In overtime of Monday Night Football between the Bengals and Broncos, Denver was up 20-17 and could win and clinch a playoff berth by getting a stop. That's when this happened to AJ McCarron:
His arm was hit by Von Miller as he was throwing and the ball wobbled into the air, it fell, and was recovered a bit later by the Broncos. The refs ruled it an incomplete pass, but it's as close as you can get. His arm barely starts moving forward before the ball starts to wiggle loose. Had the refs made the right call? Were they cowering away from making a critical overturn on a decisive play? Were they trying to avoid ruling this a fumble and recovery because the Broncos hadn't recovered it "immediately" even though it looks like they would've recovered it anyway?
Would all this somehow come back to bite the Broncos if Cincinnati went on to win and the Broncos lost next week and missed the playoffs? Could a season be decided by this minuscule moment, a 50-50 call that both sides would probably acknowledge could've gone the other way?
Broncos fans didn't have to worry long:
The very next play, McCarron never got a handle on the snap, DeMarcus Ware hopped on it, and sure enough, the Broncos are going to the playoffs anyway.
Somewhere, Rasheed Wallace is smiling.
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SB Nation presents: Denver's FG attempt to win in final seconds was shockingly bad