Walt Anderson on controversial timeout: When in doubt, the NFL wants it to be granted

The first Thanksgiving Day game featured a controversial second-quarter timeout that apparently was not called by Packers coach Matt LaFleur before a false start that would have made fourth and one from the Detroit two into fourth and six from the Detroit seven.

After the game, referee Ron Torbert told pool reporter Colton Pouncy, “We recognized the timeout called, and that the timeout was called before the false start .”

That’s obvious (and thus largely useless), given that the Packers were given the timeout — and given that the false-start foul was not enforced.

The bigger question is whether the timeout was actually called before the false start. It appears that it wasn’t, unless the official on the sideline heard LaFleur at a time when: (1) LaFleur had his mouth covered with his