Q: I was asked as the pool reporter to ask you a question as it relates to the back-to-back timeout calls by the Bills. What was the ruling on why the Bills weren't penalized for calling their second timeout?
JP: There is no foul for calling a second timeout in the rulebook. We shouldn't have granted it. We shouldn't have shut the play down. But, there is no penalty. There is no 5-yard penalty for what we did. [The procedure is to] get the players reset, the second time out is not allowed, resume play, which is what we did.
Q: I think you answered the question, but just so I'm clear, can you review the procedure as to how it all went down?
JP: It was actually an interesting play when you think of all of the things that led up to it. On third down we had a run play where we ruled a first down, so we have a running clock. Buffalo called their first timeout to stop the clock. Replay now gets involved because they want to review the spot to determine if it is a first down or [is] not a first down. Through replay, we ended up moving the ball back about a half-a-yard, to the 16-and-a-half [yard line], which now makes a fourth down, but because we didn't change it to a stopped-clock scenario, Buffalo is still charged with the timeout that they called. They come up to the line of scrimmage and the play clock is moving down from 25. I don't know exactly where it was, but it was close to zero, probably one, two or three seconds, I suppose. I think a wide receiver turned to the wing official and asked for a timeout, which should not have been granted. What we do mechanically if that does happen, which it obviously did, we bring the players out, we reset play and we go.
Q: Do I have it right that the timeout shouldn't have been granted?
JP: Correct.
Q: So if it had not been granted, the play clock would have just wound down?
JP: He could have potentially taken a delay of game, that's correct. I don't know that he would have taken it, but I think he could.
