Should Jesse James' Catch Have Stood? Video Claims Illuminati and Roger Goodell Gave Patriots Win Over Steelers

Credit to Pittsburgh sports fans: they're taking Jesse James' overturned touchdown at the end of the Steelers' loss to the Patriots on Sunday night a lot better than the players themselves.

With the Steelers running out of time, inside the final minute of the game, James thought he had caught a pass in the endzone from Ben Roethlisberger that would have given his team the win, and pole position in a two-horse race for the top seed in the AFC.

The officials thought otherwise, ruling that James had failed to control the ball as he crossed into the endzone. One of the most compelling games of a messy regular season ended on a note of controversy, and the Steelers weren't shy in showing how angry they were about it.

"It sucks, honestly. That was a b**** a** call by the refs," JuJu Smith-Schuster, the Steelers wide receiver, told ESPN after the game. The rookie's 69-yard reception had set up James' overturned touchdown. "I'm sick about it," James said. "I'll be thinking about this the rest of the night. I had my knee down, turned up the field. Whether they consider that a football move or not is up to them to decide. I guess I don't know a lot of things about football. I thought it was a touchdown for sure."

Al Riveron, the NFL's Senior Vice President of Officiating, explained in a video posted on Twitter after the game that James had lost control of the football. "[James] loses control of the football, and the ball touches the ground prior to him regaining control," Riveron said. "Therefore, the ruling on the field of a touchdown was changed to an incomplete pass."

Amid all the seriousness, the call also provided opportunities for some fun. Benstonium.com, the Pittsburgh-based website, created perhaps the best explanation for the officials' decision to overturn the touchdown. Drawing a triangle between James' left arm and the ball, they extrapolated that the Illuminati—and Roger Goodell—had a hand in the decision.

There's absolutely no suggestion that that is the case—at least for Goodell, anyway. Who knows, the Illuminati may be deciding the outcome of the NFL playoff race in 2017. While the Steelers' players continue to fume, though, it's heartening that some can see the funny side of the incident.