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The original was posted on /r/nfl by /u/whitedawg on 2024-02-20 20:27:07.
We all know that Hail Marys and multi-lateral plays rarely work, but it still seems like that’s the only thing a team will call at the end of the game if they need a TD and they’re more than about 30 yards out. I think I have a better idea.
Let’s say the offense is near midfield. The defense will inevitably be playing soft coverage, leaving the middle open, as long as it’s well short of the end zone. The offense should throw a deep in, 15-20 yards downfield. The defense will be playing soft, so they’ll almost certainly allow the receiver to make the catch and prepare to come up and tackle him. But here’s the key part. The offense should run another receiver on a deep post behind the guy who catches the ball. The first receiver catches the ball, but only lands with one foot down, pivots, and chucks the ball over the head of the advancing DBs and to the deeper receiver, who can waltz into the end zone because all the DBs have passed him to try to tackle the original receiver.
Because the first receiver never got two feet down, he never completed the act of the catch, so he never actually had possession. This means that this isn’t an illegal double pass, it’s a continuation of the same pass. Sure, it might be difficult to pull off, but it’s almost certainly a higher percentage play than your garden-variety Hail Mary or Miami Miracle.
