What constitutes a catch? It’s a question that gets asked every couple of weeks in the NFL. There are few rules in league history that generate more discussion—and angst—than the catch rule, and I was intimately involved in one of the more controversial plays in recent memory.

Facing 4th-and-1 at the Packers’ 30-yard line in a 2014 Divisional Round playoff matchup, the Cowboys’ Tony Romo floated a pass toward receiver Dez Bryant, who made one of the most athletic plays I’ve ever seen. With a defender draped all over him, he leaped into the air, controlled the ball and, as he came to the ground, reached the ball out for the goal line.

The covering official ruled it a catch and spotted the ball at the 1-yard line. The only problem was that according to NFL rules, it wasn’t a catch. When Bryant went to the ground to secure the catch, the ball hit the ground and came loose during the process. Mike McCarthy threw his challenge flag and the rest is history.

So, how did we get here, and what actually is a catch in the NFL?

There are three requirements for catching a pass:

Firm control of the ball. Two feet, or some part of the body other than hands or one foot, on the ground. Maintaining control of the ball for an element of time after No. 1 and No. 2 have been completed.

The crux of the issue lies with the third requirement. How long is long enough?

First, let’s start with the why. Rules are written a specific way to allow on-field officials to make consistent decisions in real time. The time element allows on-field officials to rule the “bang-bang” play incomplete. By “bang-bang,” I am referring to the play where the receiver gets control of the ball, and just as or immediately after his second foot hits the ground, the ball is knocked loose. If the ball comes out simultaneously or near-simultaneously with the second foot hitting the ground, the pass is incomplete. The officials do not have to determine whether the foot was down a split second before or after the ball came out. If it’s close, it’s incomplete, and the time element allows the naked eye to make that call with greater consistency.

Following a controversial play involving Calvin Johnson on the opening weekend of the 2010 season, the Competition Committee conducted a thorough examination of the matter of catch/no catch—particularly the issue of time—at its 2011 meeting. Included in the workbook materials that the Committee uses was a long review of the history of the rule in the NFL, all the way back to its inception. The issue of time, the Committee learned, has been identified in the rules in various ways through the years.

The 2004 Competition Committee Report stated the following: “Historically, if a player secures legal possession long enough to perform another act common to football, contact by a defender causing the ball to come loose is ruled either (1) a completed pass and fumble or (2) a completed pass and the receiver/runner is down by contact. Having possession long enough to perform another act common to football is defined as controlling the ball long enough to be able to intentionally hand it, pitch it, or pass it. This has been a good guideline over many years, which on-field officials should continue to use.”

During this time, the concept of a “second act” came into play. This was apparently derived from the concept of “long enough to perform another act common to football.” The thinking was if the receiver could perform a second act with the football, such as reaching it out for the line to gain, that he was demonstrating possession.

But Joel Bussert, the league office’s long-time head liaison to the Committee, believed this standard had not been applied correctly and had caused endless confusion about the definition of a catch.

Any act performed while airborne is irrelevant. The whole point of the “common act” concept was to establish a standard for how long a player must hold on to the ball after he hits the ground. If the requirement for “time enough to perform a common act” can be fulfilled before the player has established a firm grip, control and two feet on the ground, there will never be a standard requirement for how long the player must hold on to the ball to complete a catch.

As a result of its study, the Committee recommended (and the membership confirmed) adding to the playing rules the language it had previously expressed in its 2004 report, and a clarifying note that it was not necessary that the player commit such an act, provided he maintained control of the ball long enough to do so.

That is the key point when discussing the Bryant play, or any other play where the receiver goes to the ground to make a catch. When a player goes to the ground in the act of catching a pass, he must maintain control of the ball after his initial contact with the ground. If he doesn’t hold onto the ball when he hits the ground, the pass is incomplete. It doesn’t matter if he stretches the ball out on his way to the ground. He must survive the ground, and that is the bright line for the on-field officials to rule on.

So where are we today? Following the 2015 season, two groups met in New York to review video and discuss the definition of a catch. Former players Tim Brown, Cris Carter, Steve Largent, Chad Lewis, Randy Moss, James Thrash and one current player, Jordy Nelson, participated in a session with Rich McKay, Bill Polian, Jim Schwartz, Ken Whisenhunt, and former official Tom Fincken. After a lengthy video study and extensive discussion, the group recommended no changes to the rule but urged the league office to renew efforts to explain (with video) the rule to fans and media to create better understanding. I was at this meeting and watched the group of players go from skeptics to believers in the matter of a few hours. One interesting footnote was the belief by the former receivers in the room that current receivers do not take enough care in securing control of the football. Tim Brown mentioned that his first thought was to catch the ball and put it away before attempting to do anything else with it. That is great advice for the current group of NFL pass catchers that will lead to fewer incomplete passes.

The current rule is not only simple but logical, and, as the Committee explained in its 2015 Report, adheres to a basic equation:

Control + Two Feet + Time = Possession

The upright receiver completes a catch by maintaining control of the ball long enough to become a runner after his second foot is down. He demonstrates possession by having the ball long enough to be able to ward off or avoid contact by a defender. If a receiver goes to the ground before he has the ball long enough to become a runner, he completes a catch by maintaining control of the ball when his body hits the ground.

It is also important to note that the definition for the completion of a catch is married to the definition of a defenseless receiver. A player attempting to catch a pass has the protection afforded a defenseless player until he has clearly become a runner. This is important for player safety, and because the definition of possession is tied to the definition of a defenseless player, both rules are more consistently officiated.

Application of certain parts of the rule requires subjective judgment, not only in determining whether a player has held the ball long enough, but also if he is going to the ground in an attempt to catch the ball, and this will always create debate.

The rule is not perfect, and inevitably there will be plays where the application feels counterintuitive, but it works for the overwhelming majority of passing plays each season.

And sorry, Cowboys fans. It wasn’t a catch.

(Photo by Mike McGinnis/Getty Images)