“On the very first replay it was clear that his left hand came off the ball AND it moved around AND it hit the ground before he reestablished control”
Actually, the receiver had his fingers under the ball and there’s no concrete evidence that the ball ever touched the ground, the replay official simply took a guess, or just ruled it the way he wanted to rule it. Figured I would mention that since you insisted on evidence with Cooks.
Dude. The ball was quite obviously on the ground. It was uncontrolled and it touched the ground. If it had not touched the ground before he regained control -or- he had retained control throughout the catch, it would have been a catch. And most people watching thought it was until the replay. I saw the replay a dozen times, in close-ups. There is no doubt the ball hit the ground while it was uncontrolled. Fingers under it were not enough to keep it off the ground. A hand might have been, but he didn't have his hand under it, just some finger tips. There is a reason you see these receivers doing acrobatics flipping over onto their backs and so forth. It isn't to improve their odds of suffering from CTE. It is so there is no question of whether or not the ball hit the ground. There are very specific rules, and whether you agree with them in detail or not, they are the same for everybody. There have been similar calls against the Patriots during this season and prior. If Jesse James had flipped over and protected the ball instead of lunging for the end zone, the game most likely would have turned out differently. Get over it.