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NFL rules analyst Walt Anderson weighed in on the controversial interception ruling in overtime of the Denver Broncos’ victory over the Buffalo Bills on Saturday night.
Broncos defensive back Ja’Quan McMillian took the ball away from Bills wide receiver Brandin Cooks on a deep pass from Josh Allen. It appeared that Cooks had come down with the ball and that McMillian had taken it away after Cooks completed the catch. But NFL officials ruled that McMillian had intercepted the pass and created the turnover.
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Denver Broncos cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian (29) reacts after intercepting a pass intended for Buffalo Bills wide receiver Brandin Cooks (18) during overtime of an NFL divisional round playoff football game, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)
Denver came down the field and scored the game-winning field goal to advance to the AFC Championship Game.
Anderson appeared on the NFL Network and explained that Cooks never had complete control of the ball as he hit the ground and because the ball was still loose in his arms, McMillian was able to secure it for the interception.
He also addressed the issue of why there was no proper explanation of the play. Head referee Carl Cheffers didn’t address the play to the crowd or the TV audience. Anderson said replay assistant and officials in New York reviewed the play quickly and made the call.
“Replay has all of these angles to take a look and see ‘was the ruling on the field wrong, or was the ruling on the field correct?’” Anderson said. “If you can confirm that the ruling on the field is correct, they really want to move the game along, and they don’t want to have unnecessary stoppages.”
BILLS DOOMED BY BIZARRE INTERCEPTION IN PLAYOFF LOSS TO BRONCOS
Denver Broncos cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian reacts after intercepting a pass during overtime of an NFL divisional round playoff football game, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)
Bills head coach Sean McDermott was irate over the process of how the call was confirmed. He wanted officials to take a long look at the play, which is why he said he took a timeout after the interception.
“It would seem logical to me… that the head official would walk over and want to go and take a look at it, just to make sure that everybody from here who is in the stadium to there are on the same page. That’s too big of a play, in my estimation, and a play that decided the game potentially as well, to not even slow it down,” McDermott said.
“It’s hard for me to understand why it was ruled the way it was ruled. If it is ruled that way, then why wasn’t it slowed down just to make sure that we have this right? That would have made a lot of sense to me, to make sure that we have this thing right. Because that’s a pivotal play in the game. We have the ball at the 20, maybe kicking a game-winning field goal right there. So I’ll just leave it at that.”
But he did not leave it at that. In fact, according to the Buffalo News, the coach called the outlet from the team plane and berated the officials even more.
Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott reacts during the second half of an NFL divisional round playoff football game against the Denver Broncos, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/RJ Sangosti)
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“That play is not even close,” he told the outlet. “That’s a catch all the way. I sat in my locker and I looked at it probably 20 times, and nobody can convince me that that ball is not caught and in possession of Buffalo.”
Fox News’ Ryan Morik contributed to this report.
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