An official praises Dontayvion Wicks' incredible catch, highlighting his exceptional skill and evolution from last season's struggles. He could end up being the missing piece for this Green Bay Packers' offense.
We're used to hearing coaches praise their players for good plays, and Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur has been effusive in his praise for wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks after Thanksgiving's 31-24 win over the Detroit Lions.
Heck, we're even used to hearing praise from opponents. Whether it's the opposing head coach talking up a player or a rival putting some respect on someone's name, it happens all the time in the NFL.
But have you ever heard of an official giving credit to a player for a great play, even in a roundabout way?
That's rare, but Wicks got a non-direct shoutout from NFL vice president of instant replay Mark Butterworth thanks to his incredible catch in the first half against the Lions.
At first glance, it appeared that Wicks only got one foot down before he was knocked out of the end zone by a Lions defender. Upon replay, though, you realize that Wicks actually caught the ball while his right foot was down in the end zone. The left foot then came down to make it a catch -- and an incredible one at that.
"These receivers are that good," the replay official said in a post-game pool report, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN. "He controls the ball with his hand, but with his hands or arm above his body, while pulling it down, by rule, he can actually pull that ball into his body as he completes the process of a catch.
"We saw control with his right foot down and his left down in the end zone and then a third step out of the end zone."
Wicks being described as "that good" would have been laughable last season as he struggled through a league-leading 10 drop campaign. It also seemed unlikely that Wicks would be much of a consistent contributor this season, as he struggled through a calf injury that cost him much of training camp as well as two regular-season games.
He's healthy now, though, and considering how good he looked against Detroit (six catches for 94 yards and two touchdowns), he very well could end up being the missing piece for this Green Bay offense down the home stretch.
At the very least, despite all the ups and downs he's had over the past two seasons, he has the confidence of his coach -- and that's a huge deal.
"I know a lot of great receivers that have struggled with drops and then overcame that," LaFleur said. "He's got great hands. He's a natural plucker of the football, and so it's never like a lack of confidence in him. I've never wavered. I can say, [speaking] for myself and our staff, we've never wavered on his ability.
"He's so talented, and you just got to keep on approaching it the same way -- the way that he has -- and I think games like this are going to happen for him."