Never ever heard of such a rule. I still cannot figure out the call and what the ruling was.
Is it the Saints fault the clock wasn’t running? Why would the official spot the ball and not start the clock? Why would the officials allow the Saints to even snap the ball?
It was legit. Winston thought the clock was still running and that he was tackled in bounds. The refs stopped the clock because Landry got up and ran out of bounds. It’s a penalty to spike on a stopped clock.
Great find, I feel better that the call has precedent. I think it's silly and needlessly punishes a team for making a bad strategic move anyway, but I can take off my tinfoil "the refs hate us" hat now.
Yea, none of these explanations explains the fact that spiking a ball that is snapped IS stopping a moving clock. Even if the clock is stopped pre-snap, snapping the ball starts the clock. Thus, you're still spiking a moving clock.