If you’re a Cowboys fan you’re loving it! If you’re a Raiders fan, not so much! On Sunday night, the Cowboys earned a first down on a crucial fourth-and-inches in the fourth quarter thanks to the ref’s unorthodox usage of a folded piece of paper to measure a close first down.
The Cowboys ran a quarterback sneak with Dak Prescott, who picked up the first down — at least that’s what referee Gene Steratore determined, with a little help from a former tree, aka, paper.
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The controversial play occurred during the Cowboys’ winning drive against the Raiders. With under five minutes to go, the Cowboys went for a fourth-and-inches from their own 39-yard line. The stakes couldn’t be much higher. Both the Cowboys and Raiders needed to win to keep their playoff hopes alive.
And if the Cowboys failed to pick up a first down, the Raiders would’ve take over at the edge of field-goal range.source
In 2009 NFL Films looked back on the history of using the chains to measure a first down without a single mention of the “paper method.” Go figure..