Why did K.J wright knock the ball out of bounds last night? Would that have been a safety?

Apparently he didn't know that recovering the fumble would result in a touchback.

The referee's judgment was that he knew the rules and since there was nobody around him he mishandled the ball when trying to recover it.

No,

The rules say that when the offense fumbles the ball forward into the endzone then out of bounds its a touchback - which means the defense gets the ball at the 20 yard line.

A safety would be when the offense is driven backward into their own endzone.

Wright was batting the ball out to make sure it went out of bounds so the Lions couldn't recover it because he knew it would be the Seahawks ball that way.

What Wright didn't know is that batting the ball in the endzone is illegal. He should have been penalized which would have meant the Lions kept the ball.

If Wright had just grabbed the ball it would not be a safety, it would be a touchback. Its like intercepting a pass in the end zone - if he went down or fell out of bounds with the ball its just a touchback, not a safety.

Because he did not know the rule, and was not at the time aware that he would get help from the Seahawks 13th man, the referees.

Here is a quote from Wright (On the fumble at the end of the game…) “Yeah, you can’t hit it backwards, and you can’t intentionally I guess knock it out. But at the time I wasn’t thinking that, I was just trying to not mess up the game. So I know now.”

Personally, considering that the players and the referees are very well paid, they should know all the rules. I mean, for 5 million a year, you should be able to learn every rule that exists in your sport.

Untold millions of gambling dollars got paid to and were lost by the wrong people, thanks to this referee.

No, it would've been touchback, CJ's fumbling into the end zone was the force that put the ball there, so no. Penalty on SEA in their own end zone so Detroit would've got the ball at spot of fumble then half the distance to the goal line and then replayed the down....BUT I think illegal batting in the NFL gives the offense a 1st down. That's why it was a HUGE non call.

He said he did it and he didn't know it wasn't ok. It was supposed to be a penalty. If enforced the Lions would have gotten the ball back where fumbled plus half the distance to the goal line, putting it at the half yard line.

Had the illegal batting penalty been called, the Lions would have got the ball back 1st and goal at the spot of the fumble less half the distance.

He didn't know the rule, like about 90% of the people who watched the game.

It used to be a safety, I guess rules change faster than I can keep up with them.

It was stupid. he couldve just picked it up and fell down and got the same result

He didn t know the rule.