G504

I know much like after the Reggie Bush double reverse fumble against TB, it's easy the next morning to say what you coulda, woulda, shoulda done, but one more thing the thing about - Saints could have just kicked the Donovan fumble out the back of the end-zone. That would have been a touchback.

MatthewT

That is a very interesting point. You now have me wondering if the Saints kicked it out of the end zone, what the outcome would have been on that play. Do you know for certain that would have been a touchback? Would that have given Philly the ball at their own 20, or would the Saints have it at their own 20? My gut feeling tells me Philly would have had the ball at the point where it was kicked out, since they had the last possession, or on the one if done in the end zone. I seriously don't know, if you know the rule on this, please enlighten me. I do not remember ever seeing your scenario before.

UK_WhoDat

Interesting.............

Could be Eagles ball at the point of the fumble. Because a fumble and the ball out of bounds forwards (e.g. out of the end zone) is a restart at the point of fumble. A fumble and the ball out of bounds backwards is a restart at the point of where the ball goes out of bounds.

(Look - I do not know)

MatthewT

OK, I just got a response from my football coach friend. If the Saints would have in someway knocked it out of the end zone, the ball would go to the Saints at the 20 yard line. Maybe this is something that needs to be coached to the players, since it appears that the players trying jump on the ball did not understand this. Thank you all!

Euphoria

The almost exact same thing happened to me playing high school ball. I was a Free saftey and favoring the opposite side of the field when the QB...(all state). Took off around the line and I made a line to chase him down. As we got close to the end zone I leaped and managed to hit the ball down and it hit his knee and bounced out of bounds in the end zone and we got the ball on the 20.
At the time I had no idea what was going on but the ref pointed our ball as I was right in front of him without the ball.
I looked at this play and if MM recovered the ball great but aside from him the next player who had a chance was an Eagle so regarless it really wouldn't matter. You are first taught to recover the ball first and formost so much its instinctive. "It was just one of those plays".
I don't believe that play would have mattered at all though. They kicked our teeth in.

E U P H O R I A

MatthewT

You are right dude, the Eagles had it going on! That game really illustrated the Saints woes, that they have little to no defense. It was amazing watching the Eagles carve up the Saints D with almost no resistance most of the time. The Saints got away with suspect defense last season, but this season it caught up to them.