(AP) -- St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher says a mistake by the clock operator late in Sunday's last-second loss at Detroit gave the Lions an extra timeout that completely changed how the finish played out.
The 40-second time clock started three or four seconds before the game clock resumed after quarterback Sam Bradford slid for a 3-yard gain close to the sideline.
Fisher anticipated he could let the clock run to the two-minute warning, but instead had to call timeout with 2:03 to go with the play clock about to expire.
The Rams were set to run on third down after the two-minute warning, forcing the Lions to use their final timeout. Instead,
Bradford threw an incompletion and Greg Zuerlein kicked a go-ahead 46-yard field goal.
The Lions had 1:55 to work with on their final drive. Matthew Stafford's 5-yard pass to Kevin Smith with 10 seconds to go won it.
(Copyright ©2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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