Why Steve Spagnuolo was seemingly given a timeout during Ravens-Chiefs

Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo seemingly got away with something he was not allowed to do during his team’s season opener at home against the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night.

As the Chiefs were in red zone defense against the Ravens late in the second quarter, the game broadcast showed Spagnuolo, not Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, trying to call a time out for Kansas City, which the official allowed.

That’s seeimingly a big no-no for Spagnuolo and the official, as only players and head coaches are allowed to call for timeouts in the NFL.

Did the official screw this up and give Spagnuolo a timeout he wasn’t allowed to call?

Well, apparently not. Kansas City Star columnist Sam McDowell observed that Reid called the timeout first, which was granted by the official at the back pylon.

To McDowell, Spagnuolo had not spotted the exchange and was trying to notify the near ref who apparently also didn’t notice that Reid had called and been given a timeout.

So that’s apparently what happened. The exchange between Spagnuolo and the official was perfectly within NFL rules since Reid called and got the timeout first.