INDIANAPOLIS – It's an issue that no Cowboys fan has forgotten, but there will be a longer wait to hear about any developments with the Calvin Johnson Rule – or perhaps the Dez Bryant Rule, depending on who you ask.
Not that anyone needs reminding, but the Cowboys fell, 26-21, to the Packers in the divisional round of the playoffs last month, largely because of an overturned call on Bryant's 31-yard reception on fourth down.
In the month since, the NFL community and Cowboys fans everywhere have wondered if or when that rule might be changed.
"I knew we were going to have discussions," said St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher, who sits on the NFL Competition Committee. "But it's not the first time that type of play has been discussed or been controversial. It's just unfortunate that it was in the playoffs."
It was the latest chapter surrounding a hotly-debated rule that first entered public debate in 2010, when a potentially game-winning touchdown catch by Calvin Johnson against the Bears was overturned in similar circumstances.
It's been expected since the Cowboys' playoff game ended that the NFL Competition Committee would re-visit the rule during the offseason. Asked about it Tuesday, team executive vice president Stephen Jones said it had yet to be addressed.
On Friday, Fisher confirmed that it's a matter that will be tended to later in the spring.
"We didn't get a chance to get into that – we were discussing some other things this week," Fisher said. "But there's a standard, and what we have is we have basically two standards – the standard on the field, and the standard on replay. We'll look at it, we'll discuss it. If there's any modifications to it, obviously that will take place this spring."
The NFL Combine is far from the only opportunity to have the conversation. The committee will meet in Naples, Fla., in several weeks, and then there are the NFL's annual meetings in Phoenix, Ariz., this March.
"It's something that's discussed every year – the Calvin Johnson catch years ago, everybody thought it was a catch," Fisher said. "But you've got to complete the catch when you go to the ground. So we'll look at those things."
In the immediate aftermath of the loss to the Packers, Jones himself brought up the Calvin Johnson play, pointing out how difficult it is to reach a consensus on the issue.
"It's a debatable deal. I will say it's a tough call," Jones said on Jan. 11. "It's one we spend ad nauseam hours and hours and hours of trying to figure out this Megatron play. There are others that get a lot of time spent on them, but that one is right at the top.''
