Errant coin toss adds to intrigue of Cardinals vs. Packers finish

GLENDALE, Ariz. — It is supposed to be one of the easiest things an official has to do during a football game. Yet the tossing of the coin heading into overtime of the Cardinals and Packers NFC Divisional Round game led to some controversy Saturday at University of Phoenix Stadium.

Referee Clete Blakeman had some issues with getting the darned thing to flip.

Now that it's over, has anyone ever seen a coin toss like this? #GBvsAZ pic.twitter.com/zpRkYc217A

— Chris Clark (@ChrisClark_) January 17, 2016

Packers captain Aaron Rodgers called “tails” just before the coin was sent flying into the air and before hit the turf without ever flipping. There was some confusing upon its landing, and upon a re-flip, the coin came up “heads” again.

The Cardinals chose to receive and four plays later won the game 26-20.

“Clete had it on heads,” Rodgers said. “He was showing heads, so I called tails and it didn’t flip. It was just tossed in the air and did not turn over at all and landed on the ground. So we obviously thought that was not right. He picked the coin up and flipped it to tails, and he flipped it to tails and he flipped it without giving me a chance to make a recall there. It was confusing.”

“Yeah, it was odd,” Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer said. “He went to flip the coin, and it just went up and went down.”

It was certainly an unexpected turn of events in a game that featured more than its fair share of crazy plays.

“No, especially on that beautiful grass,” Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said when asked if he’s ever seen a coin flip like that. Arians never got an explanation for what exactly happened, but given how things transpired, he probably won’t require one.

Whether or not the Packers got a raw deal will likely depend on your rooting interests. It’s clear from the video the coin never made a single end-over-end rotation and needed to be tossed again, though if Rodgers was going to base his call on what side of the coin was facing up pre-flip, then it’s understandable why he might be a bit miffed.

Packers coach Mike McCarthy seemed to be at peace with the flip(s), while Arians was understandably pleased.

“I don’t know what happened with the coin toss,” he said. “I’m glad he flipped it the second time. I think we had it the first time, too.”

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