A New York Jets rookie wide receiver had the chance to break a scoreless deadlock on Thursday Night Football – only to mess up in a truly spectacular way.
In the second quarter of the contest, wide receiver Malachi Corley – a third round pick by the Jets out of Western Kentucky – took the first handoff of his NFL career on an end around play.
Corley was able to scamper his way to the end zone to break the scoreless deadlock and gave the Jets a 6-0 lead.
At least, that’s how it looked at first.
Upon further review, it was found that as Corley was racing to the end zone, he began to celebrate prematurely – dropping the ball just before the goal line.
Jets wide receiver Malachi Corley dropped the ball before the goal line and turned it over
To make matters even worse, the ball managed to roll all the way from the one-yard-line to the back of the end zone.
Officials reviewed the tape and overturned the touchdown, ruling it a fumble and a touchback which turned the ball over to the Texans.
After the game, Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers addressed the mistake: ‘We had a touchdown taken off the boad. Silly play… we said we were going to scored 28-30. I kind of count it as 28 tonight even though the scoreboard says 21.’
Jets head coach Jeff Ulbrich said, ‘I was definitely frustrated, to be honest, and angry at the same time but what an amazing opportunity for this kid to grow and learn from. I promise you, 10 years from now – when he’s still playing in this league, that will never happen again.’
At the half, the Jets were down 7-0 after Texans running back Joe Mixon was able to punch his way in for a score.
But surprisingly, they found a way to climb back into the game and beat Houston 21-13 for their third victory of the year.
That was thanks in part to a spectacular catch from Garrett Wilson – who hauled in a one-handed snag to spark the win.
The Jets had been struggling this season, despite having one of their most talented rosters in years, and entered Thursday at 2-6 on their season. Now, they move to 3-6 and snapped a five game skid in the process.
