For many, Pete Carroll’s decision to pass the ball, rather than hand it off to Marshawn Lynch, in the dying seconds of Super Bowl XLIX is the worst play call in NFL history.

But Colts’ HC Chuck Pagano may have knocked the Seahawks off their unfortunate perch last night.

Despite many pundits and fans expecting a blowout in Indianapolis, the Colts were very much in the contest against the undefeated Patriots on Sunday Night Football, thanks to an aggressive approach that seemed to catch New England somewhat off guard.

However, the wheels fell off the cart late in the third quarter, after the Colts ran one of the craziest plays the league has ever seen.

Thanks to a stop from the Patriots’ defense, Indy faced a fourth down, inside their own 40. The score was 27-21 at this point. The Colts were in striking distance, and had to remain there to have a shot at a fourth quarter comeback.

The punt team came out, as expected, but that’s where logic stopped being a factor.

Nine members of the special teams unit lined up next to the right sideline, leaving only Griff Whalen (acting as snapper) and Colt Anderson with the football.

Clearly, this was supposed to be some sort of decoy play, to catch the Patriots unawares. But the execution could not have been worse.

New England did not give up a penalty and, stunningly, a timeout was never called by the Colts. The ball was snapped by Whalen, leaving Anderson to be eaten alive by the unblocked defenders, losing yards and conceding the turnover on downs. The proceeding drive saw the Patriots find the endzone to make the score 34-21, effectively ending the game.

Naturally, questions needed answering post-game.

“I didn’t do a good enough job coaching it through the week,” said the former Baltimore defensive coordinator.

“I take full responsibility there, I didn’t do a good enough job communicating to the guys.”

That may be the understatement of the year. A play designed to confuse the opposition into making a mistake had the reverse effect, and it was a sad end to a night where Indianapolis showed real fight to keep pace with the current World Champions.

Thanks to the state of the AFC South, this loss doesn’t have a huge impact on the Colts’ playoff hopes, but one thing is for sure.

Chuck Pagano’s seat is getting hotter by the day.