SF@SEA: A total reach

For the first touchdown of his professional career, Jamycal Hasty never got to touch the end zone. All he was able to manage, after getting absolutely drilled by Seahawks’ LB Bobby Wagner, was a modest wave with the ball above the goal line.

And that’s the equivalent of a great triumph when the break-the-plane rule is in play. To us, the defense delivered better execution on this play, yet it gets dinged for allowing a red-zone touchdown. It’s a cruel world. Hocus Bogus rating: 4

IND@DET: Another fly-by

The ability to simply wave at the end zone rather than actually contact it makes life much simpler for the offense and more difficult for defenders.

When DBs must chase a ball carrier such as Detroit’s Kerryon Johnson who is angling for the pylon, offensive players know they have the advantage. They can run extra-wide and land out of bounds beyond the goal line because, thanks to the break-the-plane rule, they don’t have to contact the end zone, just give it a brief wave as they zoom through its airspace. Handy. Rating: 4

CAR@ATL: Standard stepover

Even with a potential tackler struggling to keep his feet, Atlanta QB Matt Ryan runs extra-wide as he nears the end zone and fails to hit it cleanly, landing out of bounds with his left foot for his first touch after passing the goal line. 

In a break-the-plane world, that doesn’t matter, but to us it looks like sloppy football. We would give the Falcons first-and-goal inside the 1. Rating: 3