The NFL Annual Meeting isn't always full of interesting quips between coaches or players, but more of a place to decide on future rules among owners who are billionaires. That wasn't the case with Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald and Los Angeles Rams HC Sean McVay, though.
As it turns out, LA is still mad about a moment that happened in Week 16. This stems from Seattle running back Zach Charbonnet picking up a ball that had been a backwards pass in the end zone and therefore converting a 2-point play. That helped lead to a Seattle victory that would push the team toward the top seed in the NFC.
Had Charbonnet not picked up the ball, the Seahawks likely would have lost, and the Rams might have had home-field advantage in the playoffs, changing the narrative of the season. McVay and Macdonald both know that, which led to their recent banter at the annual meeting, when a passing McVay asked Macdonald, "What’d you think of the 2-point play?"
Rams' Sean McVay simply cannot quit feeling hurt by the Seattle Seahawks
To which Macdonald replied, "That’s still on the table?" McVay is a smart guy, but so is Macdonald.
The Rams had previously put forth a plan to...Well, who knows? The truth is that when Charbonnet picked up the ball, which turned into a 2-point play, which evened the score of the Week 16 game at 30-30, Rams players could have done the same and picked up the ball too, essentially ending the play and keeping Seattle two points behind.
It is clear that on the conversion attempt, Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold had thrown a backward pass that hit off a helmet that no one caught. That the QB threw the ball backwards made the ball live, however. Charbonnet was the only player who did what his youth league coaches told him: "Pick up the ball until the whistle is blown."
NFL offices in New York called for a review of the play after the officials on the field ruled the play over, but New York was correct. Had the issue happened in reverse, and the Rams picked up the ball on offense to tie the game, the ruling wouldn't have made Seahawks fans happy, but New York's interceding would have still been correct.
In fact, the Los Angeles Rams keep harping on the fact that the play changed the narrative of the game, which seems like sour grapes. Nobody did anything wrong, and the right call was made. Seattle Seahawks fans might find a lot of happiness in the Rams still having their feelings hurt about what happened.