Bears still a little fuzzy on disputed TD call
Referee Walt Coleman's explanation of the disputed 2-yard TD catch by Lions wide receiver Golden Tate with 53 seconds left in the first half Sunday clarifies the call - kind of.
Originally the play was ruled an endzone interception by Bears linebacker Jonathan Anderson after cornerback Kyle Fuller stripped the ball from Tate as he was crossing the goalline. Upon review it was reversed.
Coleman explained it thusly to Lions pool reporter Paula Pasche of the Oakland Press: "The receiver gained possession of the ball with two feet down, and he was standing upright. He wasn't going to the ground, he was standing upright. Two feet down. Possession of the ball.
"Takes it one more step, and then the ball was stripped out. Well, in the endzone, once you have the completed catch, it's a touchdown. The play is over. He was standing upright. It wasn't like he was going to the ground where he would have had to have held onto the ball. But he was standing upright. Completed the catch with the ball in the endzone - that makes it a touchdown."
Bears coach John Fox, in his 14th year as an NFL head coach and his 27th season in the league, still isn't completely clear on what to tell his players about interpreting what is and isn't a catch.
"I've been doing this for a minute and it's still a little gray for me," Fox said. "I'm sure we'll get another video that we'll be able to look at and educate our players and we'll take it from there."
Nice start:
Jonathan Anderson's fourth-quarter interception set up the touchdown that gave the Bears a 31-24 lead.
It would have been his second pick of the game - and his NFL career - had the original call held up under review instead of being ruled a TD catch by the Lions' Golden Tate in the final minute of the first half.
"I thought (his performance) was pretty good," coach John Fox said. "He's a guy we called up (from the practice squad), and he's got a skill set. He's proven to us on the practice field that he deserved that opportunity, and I think for a first outing it wasn't too bad."
Anderson, an undrafted rookie from TCU, split time with LaRoy Reynolds in the spot vacated by Shea McClellin, who was out with a knee injury. The 6-foot-1, 231-pound Anderson also had 3 tackles.
Up and down:
Cornerback Bryce Callahan was elevated from the practice squad to the 53-man roster and safety Demontre Hurst was waived.
Callahan, an undrafted rookie from Rice, appeared in the first two games and spent the last four weeks on the practice squad.
Hurst has started twice and played in 18 games for the Bears since 2014, with 36 defensive tackles, 1 interception and 1 forced fumble, in addition to 9 special teams tackles. He is eligible to return to the Bears' practice squad, where he spent two weeks earlier this season.