Mike Vrabel wins a challenge he shouldn’t have had…

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The Titans scored a touchdown early in the second quarter today against the Patriots, but Tennessee coach Mike Vrabel was rightly upset with the process that led to the touchdown.

With the Titans at the 1-yard line, Tennessee quarterback Ryan Tannehill tossed a short pass to Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, who turned toward the end zone, slipped and fell, and thrust the ball over the goal line.

It was clearly a touchdown. It might not have been in college football, where a player is down as soon as his knee hits the ground. But in the NFL, where a player isn’t down until he’s touched down, it was obvious to everyone watching that Westbrook-Ikhine scored a touchdown because no one on the Patriots touched him before he reached the ball over the goal line.

Somehow the officials ruled Westbrook-Ikhine down at the 1-foot line. And that’s when it got really interesting.

Vrabel threw his red challenge flag, but not before gesturing to the referee that he should have been talking to the replay assistant who could have communicated that it was clearly a touchdown. Vrabel didn’t want to have to use one of his challenges on a play that was this obvious.

NFL officials are increasingly relying on the replay assistant for help, and the NFL has not clearly outlined when the officials should and should not use that communication with the replay assistant. Sometimes, a referee will announce that “after discussion” he has changed the initial ruling. Such a discussion should have happened in this case, but it didn’t, and as a result Vrabel had to use one of his challenges.

If the NFL implemented a sky judge, another official who was in regular communication with the crew, there’s little doubt that plays like the Titans’ touchdown would be ruled correctly without needing to be challenged. Vrabel may advocate for a sky judge after what happened to his team today.