Did Ken Whisenhunt Make the Right Call on the Game Tying Field Goal?

Most folks are saying that Ken Whisenhunt was a genius when he allowed Jay Feely to kick a 61-yard field goal that tied the game and forced an overtime in Sunday’s game against the Bills.

Not me. I thought it was a bad call at the time, and still feel it was the wrong call, despite the outcome.

Bill Barnwell feels the same way — and crystallizes it here: http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8506988/the-top-teams-game-rest-week-6-news

Basically, the Cardinals had all three of their timeouts, with 1:14 left on the clock, when they made the decision to attempt a game tying field goal from 61 yards away.

I would argue that they would have had a better chance to score a tying field goal, or even a game winning touchdown, if they would have punted at that point, called three time outs, and forced the Bills to punt back to the Cardinals deep in their own territory.

What proves the point is the fact that after the Cardinals did kick the field goal that tied the game, the exact scenario actually occurred: the Bills got the ball back and the Cardinals called three time outs on three consecutive plays.  And the Cardinals then got the ball back with 50 seconds to play — and got into field goal range for a kick!

The fact that Feely made the 61-yard field goal is irrelevant.  The odds certainly favored three stops and the Cardinals getting another shot than Feely kicking a 61- yard field goal.

So kudos to Feely for hitting that long field goal. (I would have been a lot happier if he hit the second one, too.)  But in my opinion, it still was a bad call by Ken Whisenhunt.