Mark Ingram could have stepped up. Instead, he stepped out — but there was a reason for that.
The fourth quarter of the Week 13 Buccaneers-Saints “Monday Night Football” matchup was one for the ages. Not because of crisp, clean execution and Grade-A football, but because of endless questionable coaching decisions and missed opportunities by players
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Exhibit 1A: Saints running back Mark Ingram stepped out of bounds shy of the first-down marker on a second-down checkdown pass, setting up a pivotal, and eventually costly, third-and-1 for the Saints.
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Ingram’s decision to step out came with 6:11 remaining in the fourth quarter and New Orleans (4-9) leading 16-3. The better play would have been for Ingram to both grab the first down and stay in bounds, both options that seemed to be very much on the table for him in the moment. Instead, Ingram stepped out, enraging a fair amount of Saints fans (and viewers at large).
Why did Mark Ingram go out of bounds?
As it turns out, Ingram injured his knee on the play, according to coach Dennis Allen.
On the ensuing play, Andy Dalton couldn’t connect with Marquez Callaway on a pass. Allen then decided to punt to Tom Brady and the Bucs’ offense.
Tampa Bay (6-6) wouldn’t look back. It scored two touchdowns in the closing minutes to steal a win over its division rival and extend its lead in the NFC South race.
“Hindsight is 20/20, I wish we would’ve run it (on third down),” Allen said after the game. “Mark hurt his knee on the previous play, so it came up a yard short. That’s frustrating.”
Injury or not, maybe Ingram will want to extend the ball beyond the sticks in the future.
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