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In 1951, officials missed a “palpably unfair act” when Ray Bray made a tackle from the sideline

Sunday’s NFC Championship introduced many to the rule that allows game officials, under certain circumstances, to award a touchdown in response to a “palpably unfair act.”

It’s never been used in a game, as far as anyone knows. On Sunday night, we listed some circumstances over the past decade or so when it could have happened. In 2013, for example, the Ravens could have been awarded a touchdown when Steelers coach Mike Tomlin strayed too close to the field and disrupted Jacoby Jones’s kickoff return.

In 1951, a player not in the game went even farther than that. Bears guard Ray Bray came off the sideline to tackle a Rams player who had intercepted and pass and was heading to the end one. From Bray’s 1993 obituary: “Mr. Bray stepped on the field and tackled the opponent without anyone realizing he was not one of the 11 Bears players on the field for the play.”

Seventy-four years ago, no one saw Bray. If they had, it would have become a prime instance for what would have been the only application of the “palpably unfair act” rule in NFL history.