NFL changed this play from a sack, costing fantasy football player a $1 million prize
To most viewers who actually stuck around to watch the final minutes of the Rams’ 24-10 win over the Bears on Monday night, this was a forgettable play in a forgettable game.
With 3 minutes, 4 seconds to play, Los Angeles quarterback Jared Goff took the snap and faked a handoff. When he turned to throw, Goff found the Bears’ James Vaughters nearby, so Goff took off running and slid to the ground behind the line of scrimmage.
It was initially ruled a sack, but the NFL later switched it to a running play. The majority of football fans didn’t know or care about the change.
The big exception: Rob Huntze of St. Louis.
According to ESPN, Huntze’s lineup in a DraftKings fantasy football game including the Bears’ and Rams’ defenses had scored 92.79 points, the top score out of 176,470 entries. His prize for winning? A cool million dollars.
But after the game this play was switched from a sack to a 3-yard loss on a run:
That changed the scoring in the fantasy game. Instead of winning, Huntze tied for sixth place with 18 other entries, which earned him $3,078.94, ESPN said. That’s a nice prize, but $996,921.06 less than he thought he’d won.
“Heartbreaking,” Huntze told ESPN, “on many levels.”
“It had to be a sack,” Huntze added. “There’s no other way to look at it.”
Michael Signora, NFL senior vice president of football and international communications, explained the decision.
“In this instance, because the play happened so close to the end of the game, it was reviewed by the Stats Crew and then updated prior to publishing the Game Summary, commonly referred to as the Game Book,” Signora told ESPN.
Statistical updates are commonplace, so Huntze said he didn’t celebrate right away.
“I waited a minute. Stat corrections got me in the past,” Huntze told KMOV-TV in St. Louis. “I gave it time. I wasn’t texting anybody. Finally, I called my best friend, I went out and called my parents. I told them they were going to get some money, which they were happy about.”
After the calls, Huntze refreshed his computer and saw his victory was short-lived.
“(I thought) OK, so I win $100,000, or $50,000, or some money. That’s alright,” he told KMOV. “I go down the list: $3,000, tied for sixth. At that point, it was disbelief. I (went outside and) let out a guttural scream and then came back inside. I might have hit the door.”
Five entries finished tied for first and shared the $1 million prize, ESPN reported.
Huntze plans to get back on the fantasy football horse.
“I’m going to play Thursday,” he told KMOV. “I’m going to win it this time.”
This story was originally published October 29, 2020 at 10:31 AM with the headline "NFL changed this play from a sack, costing fantasy football player a $1 million prize."
