The Browns’ game-winning field goal in Nashville was set up by a 36-yard catch-and-run by tight end Harold Fannin Jr. But a pre-snap penalty probably should have been called.
Right tackle Dawand Jones left early. Watch the play. It was very early. Noticeably earlier than the move perfected in recent years by Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson, who routinely utilized the technique of going at the perfect moment to give him a jump on blocking the pass rusher without having the plug on the play pulled by a false-start penalty.
Jones didn’t just leave early. And he didn’t use the far more common single early step with his right foot. He jumped back, like he’d just seen a rattlesnake.
Yes, a similar play happened earlier in the quarter, with the Titans’ right tackle seemingly taking an early step. But that was far closer to the Johnson maneuver. The right leg moved a nanosecond before the snap started. When it’s that close, the officials don’t shut the play down.
Neither was flagged. The Jones play should have been.