It was Super Bowl LII. The Philadelphia Eagles were taking on the defending champions, New England Patriots. With 38 seconds left before half-time and the Eagles leading by just 3 points, the underdogs pulled out an unusual trick play that took them closer to lifting their first Lombardi Trophy. It was the “Philly Special.”

As the Eagles led 15-12, they faced a fourth-and-goal from the 1. While most teams would’ve gone for a field goal to add three more points, Philadelphia brought out the “Philly Special.” It involved snapping the ball to running back Corey Clement, who ran left and pitched the ball to tight end Trey Burton. What did he do? Burton ran to the center and threw the ball to the right side of the endzone. Who caught it? Of all people, it was their (backup) quarterback, Nick Foles.

Something similar happened during the Week 9 clash between the Denver Broncos and the Baltimore Ravens. But not quite.

Given the duties of color commentary for the Broncos vs Ravens on Sunday, CBS broadcaster Tony Romo reportedly angered fans with his play-calling. As Bo Nix became the first player to throw a touchdown pass, run, and catch this season, Romo may have termed that play the “Philly Special.” And, well, that didn’t go down too well with many.

Coming into this clash, the Broncos quarterback had already completed 63.2% of his passes for 191.3 yards per game. He even added eight touchdowns, four rushing touchdowns, and just five interceptions to his name. But the “trick & a treat🎃” play (as the Broncos put it) that this year’s 12th overall pick pulled out of his pocket was a sight to behold in Baltimore.

With the Broncos down 10-0 in the second quarter, Bo Nix decided to hand the football to running back Javonte Williams. From there, Williams found wide receiver Courtland Sutton. In between those plays, Nix had already made his way to the end zone. This led to Sutton floating the pass toward the Broncos quarterback over Ravens safety Marcus Williams. As Williams found himself watching the football sail above his head, Nix scored the touchdown.

That pass had a completion probability of 21.9%. But Bo Nix caught it, making it the most improbable reception by a quarterback since 2018. Butt let’s compare it to the original “Philly Special.”

In that Super Bowl game from 2018, the ball was snapped straight to the running back. The running back passed it to the tight end, who then threw it to the quarterback for a touchdown. In Sunday’s game, though, Bo Nix caught the snap and gave the ball to his running back. Williams passed it to Sutton, who isn’t a tight end. Although it had shades of the “Philly Special” written all over it, Sutton not being a tight end led to fans questioning Tony Romo’s knowledge on Sunday.

Most everyone called Nix’s play a “Philly Special,” but it wasn’t one in its truest sense. One fan went ahead and pointed out Romo’s mistake: “No Tony Romo… that is not Philly Special 🤦‍♂️Once again, the RB takes the snap and lateral to the TE for it to be Philly Special. Get it right.” Well, this wasn’t the first time that NFL fans left Romo red-faced. He found himself in a similar position last week while calling the clash between the Commanders and the Bears.

Fans bash Tony Romo after his mistake on Sunday

While Broncos fans may have jumped in excitement at seeing their quarterback pull out a trick play to outmaneuver the Ravens’ defense, some fans weren’t too happy with Tony Romo using the term “Philly Special” casually on Nix’s touchdown catch, “Stop using the term Philly Special. They were not the first one nor the last one to ever run that play and score a touchdown with it. Not called a Philly special just because you think you’re cool saying it that way, @tonyromo.” 

Back in 2022, during the Week 4 game between the Jets and the Steelers, Zach Wilson pulled off something similar. On a second and goal from the 2, the ball was snapped to Wilson, who passed it to wide receiver Garrett Wilson. Wilson flipped it to wide receiver Braxton Berrios, who then threw the ball to a wide-open Zach Wilson for the touchdown. That gave the Jets a 10-0 lead in the second quarter.

So, yes. Touchdowns by quarterbacks may not be common, but they have happened multiple times in the past. And calling them the “Philly Special” when the passage of the ball isn’t the same as the original “Philly Special” isn’t entirely accurate, which is why fans called out Tony Romo. While this fan only mildly expressed their frustration, another fan wasn’t as kind: “Tony Romo, that was not the Philly special, you f—— dunce.” 

Well, Romo hasn’t had the best weeks in the NFL these past few days. Going back to last week, when Jayden Daniels threw a Hail Mary that landed in the hands of Noah Brown.

The Commanders were able to win the game at the very last second. However, leading to that moment, Romo instead suggested that the Commanders could bring on backup quarterback Marcus Mariota. After Daniels’ touchdown pass that gave the Commanders the win over the Bears, fans were quick to point fingers at Romo’s suggestion.

“Tony Romo was saying they should maybe bring in Mariota to get the football there, and then Jayden Daniels threw it 65 yards in the air.” Another fan also ensured that everyone remembered Romo’s suggestion to bring on Mariota, “Never forget that Tony Romo suggested putting in Marcus Mariota seconds before Jayden Daniels threw that.” 

Considering this week’s mistake, Romo has yet again found himself embarrassed by the fans. But taking nothing away from Nix’s touchdown catch, it surely got the NFL talking about the “Philly Special” after a long time.