Justin Jefferson’s fumble at the goal line was one of the pivotal moments in the Minnesota Vikings’ loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday night and the NFL’s controversial rule regarding fumbles at the goal line now has political figures getting involved, namely former Vice President Mike Pence.
The controversy began when Jefferson hauled in a 30-yard pass from Kirk Cousins with 41 seconds to go in the second quarter and tried to extend the ball for a touchdown. While trying to score, Jefferson lost control of the ball, which went to the outside of the pylon. By rule, the play is called a touchback and the opposing team gets the ball at the 20-yard line.
That rule has been heavily debated and NFL Network’s Kyle Brandt likened it to a top political debate on Friday morning’s episode of Good Morning Football.
“Next year is an election year and the big topics are going to be the economy, healthcare and fumbling through the back of the end zone,” Brandt joked. “You have to have a take. When [Ron] DeSantis and [Mike] Pence are debating, never mind what you think about foreign policy, how do you feel about this? You have two minutes on the clock, let’s go.”
Brandt didn’t have to wait for his metaphorical debate as Pence took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to give his opinion on the matter.
.@KyleBrandt, you should not be able to advance the football with a recovery in the end zone, and likewise you should not be further penalized if the opponent does not gain possession. So therefore, the ball should be marked where the fumble occurred. pic.twitter.com/X3bTcbXvuU
— Mike Pence (@Mike_Pence) September 15, 2023
For what it’s worth, Pence did not state that the Vikings should keep the ball but he did mention that the Eagles shouldn’t have been rewarded by getting the ball at the 20.
The play turned out to be huge for Philadelphia, who used their field positioning to set up a 61-yard field goal at halftime and went on to pick up a 34-28 victory over Minnesota.
