United States
Argentina 
Australia 
Austria 
Brazil 
Canada 
Chile 
Czechia 
France 
Germany 
Greece 
Italy 
Mexico 
New Zealand 
Nigeria 
Norway 
Poland 
Portugal 
Sweden 
Switzerland 
United Kingdom Why Bailey Zappe's first NFL touchdown pass in Patriots vs. Packers game was controversial
Before Sunday, few had heard of Bailey Zappe, the Patriots' third-string quarterback. Zappe was called upon to lead offense after Brian Hoyer, who was filling in for Mac Jones, left New England's game against Green Bay because of a head injury.
He was impressive in his first taste NFL action. Midway through the third quarter, he threw the first touchdown of his professional career to DeVante Parker.
MORE: Bailey Zappe, who are you? Everything you need to learn about the Patriots' rookie quarterback
Many believe that the play should not have been performed.
Zappe stood up to take the snap. The play clock had clearly reached zero and remained there for a while. The whistle never came and play continued as normal. Take a look at these photos:
lol the Patriots blanked the end of the play clock by at least two full seconds and got a free touchdown because of it pic.twitter.com/yHRlRd7nlw
— Christian D'Andrea (@TrainIsland) October 2, 2022
Should the referees whistle for a delay in game penalty? Well, yes.
As NFL fans know, the delay of game rules is fluid. The officiating crew typically gives an extra second after the play clock hits zero before deciding to blow the play dead.
“The back judge is responsible for keeping track of the play clock," league spokesman Michael Signora told Pro Football Talk back in 2018.
"Officiating mechanics dictates that once the clock expires, the back judge looks immediately at the ball. If it is being snapped, then there is no foul for delay of game.”
MORE: Aaron Rodgers implies he worked the officials before Bucs' penalty on crucial 2-point play
In this case, it appears at least two full seconds passed with the play clock displaying zeroes — definitely a frustratingly long time from a Green Bay perspective.
The no-call will not be a problem for Patriots fans, nor Bailey Zappe. The game ended in overtime with the Packers winning the 27-24 victory as time expired. So the no-call was not a significant factor.
