Pittsburg/Miami Fumble

[Cobra]

Originally Posted by mbcrowder

How was it not clear? A Dolphin handed the ball to the referee.

Who ends up with the ball does not matter. It was not clear who recovered the ball. There was a big pile on the ground with people diving for the ball; it was not clear who recovered the ball.

Originally Posted by BktBallRef

Whether it was an IW or not under NFL rules, I don't know. But that is pretty much the way it was treated.

This play was no different than any other challenge on a fumble in the NFL when the initial call was no fumble. It has to be clear which team recovers the ball in order to give them the ball. Normally it is clear, this time it was not.