'I Caught It!' Patriots TE Hunter Henry On Controversial Call in Loss to Vikings
With just over six minutes remaining in the third quarter of the New England Patriots Week 12 matchup with the Minnesota Vikings at U.S Bank Stadium, Pats quarterback Mac Jones found tight Hunter Henry to the short left on 3rd and Goal for a six-yard score … seemingly his second touchdown catch in as many drives.
Though Henry’s reach for the end zone broke the goal line, the officials’ review concluded that the tight end lost control of the ball as he went to the ground. Despite having both hands under the ball, the call was reversed. New England was forced to settle for a 24-yard Nick Folk-field goal, thus facilitating their 33-26 loss to the Vikings on Thanksgiving night.
While many social media sleuths will continue to argue (over the next few days) whether the catch was indeed made, Henry is pretty convinced that he did his job.
“They called what they called,” Henry said following Thursday’s game. “I believe I caught it. But, I mean, they made the call, and just gotta live with it.”
When asked about the aforementioned ‘loss of control,’ provided further explanation.
“They said it hit the ground, but my hand was under it — I believe my hand was under the ball. The hand was under the ball with it hitting the ground, that’s what kind of caused [the ball] to jump up.”
In an attempt to provide definitive clarification, NFL Senior Vice President of Officiating Walt Anderson explained why the pass was ruled incomplete.
“He [Henry] was going to the ground,” Anderson told PFWA Pool Reporter Mike Reiss. “The ball ended up touching the ground and then he lost control of the ball in his hands.”
When asked a follow-up question as to why Henry was not granted possession before the ball hit the ground, Anderson responded:
“Because as he’s going to the ground, he has to maintain control of the ball upon contacting the ground. The term that’s commonly used is ‘surviving the ground’ – a lot of people refer to that. So, as he’s going to the ground, he has the elements of two feet and control, but because he’s going to the ground, he has to maintain control of the ball when he does go to the ground.”
Replays from nearly every angle clearly show that Henry had both hands on the ball. However, Anderson maintained that his hold on the ball was not the deciding factor in the final ruling.
“Well, if he had maintained control of the ball with two hands, even if the ball were to touch the ground, if you don’t lose control of the ball after it touches the ground, that would still be a catch,” Anderson concluded.
While the officials’ reversal clearly turned the tide in the Vikings favor, New England still had several chances to regain both the momentum and the lead. Protection breaks along the offensive line, combined with questionable play calling in clutch moments darkened an otherwise stellar day for Jones and the Pats offense.
As such, the Pats starting quarterback is not is not placing the blame for his team’s loss on Henry’s controversial reversal.
“We got to move on from that play and play the rest of the game,” Jones said at the postgame podium. “The refs have a job to do. They looked at that play and ruled it incomplete...there were other chances we had where we could have punched it in...one call can't determine the outcome."
Therefore, Jones, Henry and the Patriots must turn the page as they continue their pursuit of the postseason.
With the loss, New England drops to 6-5 on the season; essentially finding themselves in must-win territory as they prepare for their Week 13 matchup with the defending AFC East Champions, the Buffalo Bills.
The Pats will welcome the Bills (8-3) to the friendly confines of Gillette Stadium on Thurs. Dec. 1 for an 8:15 p.m. ET kickoff.
Follow Mike D’Abate on Twitter @mdabateNFL and Listen/Subscribe to his daily podcast: Locked On Patriots
New England and beyond! Get your Patriots game tickets from SI Tickets ... here!
Follow Patriots Country on Twitter and Facebook
Want the latest in breaking news and insider information on the Patriots? Click Here
More Patriots coverage from Sports Illustrated here.
