The Eagles believe that Ryan Mathews' game-changing fumble late in the fourth quarter of their 24-23 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday should have resulted in their retaining possession - not the Lions taking the ball with a chance to win.
A Zapruder-like dissection of the game film reveals that the loose ball might have touched Jason Kelce's knee while the center's hand was out of bounds before the Lions recovered it. By rule, a player who touches a fumble while out of bounds makes it a dead ball. The Eagles would have had a fourth down and a chance to punt, taking time off the clock and pinning the Lions back to make it more difficult to kick the winning field goal.