Dallas Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones acknowledged in January that officials made the correct call on Dez Bryant's controversial "catch" that was ruled incomplete versus the Green Bay Packers in the playoffs.
At the time, Jones called on the league to "tweak" the rule to reflect the fact that Bryant did indeed catch the ball.
Two months later, the NFL's Competition Committee attempted to clarify the convoluted "process of the catch" rule, adding that a receiver must "clearly establish himself as a runner" before going to ground.
The upshot is that Bryant's "catch" is still not a catch under NFL rules.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, for one, remains unconvinced.
"Of course he caught the ball," Jones told ESPN on Tuesday. "Dez knew he caught the ball."
This is the NFL's problem. Owners, coaches, players and even game officials remain confused on a rule that isn't interpreted correctly on a consistent basis.
Bryant's tremendous play is an obvious catch on every patch of grass in the world outside of an NFL stadium.
More to the point, the NFL should be encouraging the transcendent moments that inspire fans and stretch physical limitations.
Bryant made a rare play to leap 10 feet in the air and span 5 yards on the gridiron to come down with a contested ball and lunge for a potential game-winning touchdown. There are perhaps a dozen people on this planet capable of pulling off that feat.
The possibility of a peak human performance that soars into the sublime? This is the essence of sports. It should be rewarded, not legislated out of the game.
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