Correct me if I'm wrong here. Once you snap the ball, the clock runs, correct? So, even if the clock was stopped beforehand, once the ball is snapped, the clock runs, you can spike the ball. What am I not seeing here? Other than another bad call by the refs?
I had not considered that angle. From that perspective, I think the rule doesn’t clearly state the of the clock before the snap. Here is an excerpt from the rule posted earlier:
“Item 3. Stopping Clock. A player under center is permitted to stop the game clock legally to save time if, immediately upon receiving the snap, he begins a continuous throwing motion and throws the ball directly into the ground.”
I assume the refs think it doesn’t make sense to burn a down by spiking it when the clock wasn’t running before the snap. Rulesmakers didn’t think to state the status of the clock before the snap. Nevertheless, despite some bad calls against us, the refs actually did us a favor by stopping the clock, we just didn’t take advantage of it. It’s on the staff and Winston. Both need to be aware of the clock, down and distance.