John Fox wins replay challenge in costly way in Bears' loss to Packers
Benny Cunningham's
Watch the replay of  Benny Cunningham's  23-yard catch-and-run in the second quarter  and two things become clear.
Two   he  screwed up trying to do so.
Let's review: As  Cunningham  juked  his  way to the front right corner of the end zone   he  dove and extended the ball while Packers safety Marwin Evans shoved him out of bounds.  Cunningham  crashed into the pylon as the ball slipped free. Officials ruled  Cunningham  out at the 2-yard line.
"We're taught not to do it; unless it's fourth down  you don't reach the ball out  " Cunningham  said. "But  honestly  at the time  I wasn't thinking about that. I was trying to score a touchdown for the team."
 Fox   under advice from  his  assistants who help with video reviews  challenged the ruling that  Cunningham  stepped out of bounds.
"Every indication we had was  he  scored  " Fox  said. "And  if anything   he  would be at the 1 or inside in the 1."
So rather than have  his  offense line up with three tries from the 2-yard line   Fox  threw the challenge flag with hopes of being awarded a touchdown or  at worst  having the ball advanced a few feet.
But replays showed  Cunningham  lost possession before  he  hit the pylon  which  in the context of the video review  had unintended consequences.
Replay officials in New York decided  Cunningham  lost possession before  he  was out of bounds and before  he  hit the pylon.
"When I watched the review  I felt like they made the right call "  Cunningham  said. "Just a bad play on my part  but the refs got it right."
To  Fox   the fumble wasn't as obvious.
"I think maybe on 50 times  like some people get to look at it  I think maybe you could see that "  he  said. "But on our look during the game  that wasn't really even discussed."
Here's the thing  though:  Cunningham 's left foot dragged onto the sideline as  he  dove for the pylon.
Slow down the replay frame-by-frame and it's still nearly impossible to determine if  Cunningham  lost possession before  his  foot touched the sideline. What's more  as Dean Blandino  the NFL's former head of officiating  explained on Fox Sports  the determining factor should have been whether  Cunningham  was in contact with the ball while  he  was out of bounds and before  he  hit the pylon.
"Even if  he  doesn't have control  and  he 's just touching that loose ball with a foot out of bonds  that would make the play dead prior to it hitting the pylon  and it would not be a touchback."
In that case  the Bears should have retained possession where  Cunningham  fumbled  the 2.
Watch the replay of   [TGT] 23-yard catch-and-run in the second quarter  and two things become clear.
Two    [TGT]   screwed up trying to do so.
Let's review: As  Cunningham  juked   [TGT]   way to the front right corner of the end zone    [TGT]   dove and extended the ball while Packers safety Marwin Evans shoved him out of bounds.  Cunningham  crashed into the pylon as the ball slipped free. Officials ruled  Cunningham  out at the 2-yard line.
"We're taught not to do it; unless it's fourth down  you don't reach the ball out  " Cunningham  said. "But  honestly  at the time  I wasn't thinking about that. I was trying to score a touchdown for the team."
 Fox   under advice from  his  assistants who help with video reviews  challenged the ruling that  Cunningham  stepped out of bounds.
"Every indication we had was  he  scored  " Fox  said. "And  if anything   he  would be at the 1 or inside in the 1."
So rather than have  his  offense line up with three tries from the 2-yard line   Fox  threw the challenge flag with hopes of being awarded a touchdown or  at worst  having the ball advanced a few feet.
But replays showed  Cunningham  lost possession before  he  hit the pylon  which  in the context of the video review  had unintended consequences.
Replay officials in New York decided  Cunningham  lost possession before  he  was out of bounds and before  he  hit the pylon.
"When I watched the review  I felt like they made the right call "  Cunningham  said. "Just a bad play on my part  but the refs got it right."
To  Fox   the fumble wasn't as obvious.
"I think maybe on 50 times  like some people get to look at it  I think maybe you could see that "  he  said. "But on our look during the game  that wasn't really even discussed."
Here's the thing  though:  Cunningham 's left foot dragged onto the sideline as  he  dove for the pylon.
Slow down the replay frame-by-frame and it's still nearly impossible to determine if  Cunningham  lost possession before  his  foot touched the sideline. What's more  as Dean Blandino  the NFL's former head of officiating  explained on Fox Sports  the determining factor should have been whether  Cunningham  was in contact with the ball while  he  was out of bounds and before  he  hit the pylon.
"Even if  [TGT]  [TGT]   doesn't have control  and   [TGT]  's just touching that loose ball with a foot out of bonds  that would make the play dead prior to it hitting the pylon  and it would not be a touchback."
In that case  the Bears should have retained possession where  Cunningham  fumbled  the 2.