The Lions' innovative play-calling and trickery hasn't dropped off a bit this season as offensive coordinator John Morton continues to trot out the same fancy stuff that made Ben Johnson a household name. And it appeared Detroit had kick-started another primetime showcase by thinking outside the box in the form of a David Montgomery touchdown pass to Jared Goff on the opening drive Sunday night vs. the Chiefs. Yet after some deliberation and a deep dive into the NFL rule book, officials ruled that Goff had committed an illegal shift by bounding out from center.
Illegal formation penalty just robbed Jared Goff of a receiving touchdown:pic.twitter.com/APizZxeqQ9
— Deadspin (@Deadspin) October 13, 2025
On the Sunday Night Football broadcast rules expert Terry McAulay was all over it in the moment, explaining that the quarterback would need to get set after taking such a surprising departure under center.
The ruling ended up costing the Lions four points as they had to settle for a field goal and that snazzy offense never got on track as Kansas City put all kinds of pressure on Goff en route to a 30-17 win.
Perhaps the most surprised people in the stadium after the costly call were the Lions, who apparently had never heard of such a rule, which Goff revealed post-game.
"I've never heard this: because of how close I was to the center, that declares I'm the quarterback," Goff said. "If that is the rule, I guess we need to do a little more research."
Jared Goff said he and many coaches had never heard of the rule that nullified his TD catch. He was under the impression that he would be fine as long as he didn't put his hands under center.
— Nolan Bianchi (@nolanbianchi) October 13, 2025
"I've never heard this: because of how close I was to the center, that declares I'm the…
Given that the Chiefs thoroughly outplayed the Lions for the 50 remaining minutes after the penalty, it's not as though this mistake swung the outcome of the game. Still, it's a tough pill to swallow for Dan Campbell's side, who are making quite a habit of being thwarted by unusual officiating moments during their highest-profile games.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jared Goff and Lions Didn't Know About Rule That Took Away Trick-Play Touchdown.
