Al Michaels made a great call in the fourth quarter of Thursday Night Football, offering a quick — and ultimately correct — analysis of a touchdown play before the official review concluded.
Early in the fourth, Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson hit wide receiver Tylan Wallace on a short sideline pattern. Wallace dodged three Cincinnati Bengals defenders and tightroped along the sideline for an 84-yard touchdown.
The immediate question: Had Wallace stepped out of bounds? While officials reviewed the play, the Prime Video production crew cued a great replay angle of Wallace running inches from the sideline.
“Here’s a great look to see if he stayed in bounds,” analyst Kirk Herbstreit said.
At one point, Wallace’s right foot appeared to go out of bounds.
“Oh, look at that! The right foot!” Michaels said.
“Oh, that’s the one they’ll look at,” Herbstreit said.
“Almost looked like the toe was in (bounds), the heel was up,” Michaels quickly observed.
That was not an easy determination to make after one quick glance at the replay, but Michaels nailed it. Officials confirmed the touchdown, and Jackson had the longest TD pass of his career.
TYLAN WALLACE TAKES IT 84 YARDS TO THE 🏠#CINvsBAL on Prime Video
Also streaming on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/b9AjMKfnRD— NFL (@NFL) November 8, 2024
The broadcast ran another look at the play, allowing Herbstreit to explain how Wallace pulled off the touchdown.
He ran on a tightrope to stay in bounds 😳 @OfficialTylan2 pic.twitter.com/GKNcO2B1hg
— NFL (@NFL) November 8, 2024
Kudos to Herbstreit for a fine effort Thursday night under difficult circumstances, following the death of his beloved golden retriever, Ben.
[Amazon Prime]
