What Happened When the Beeper Didn’t Beep

A $7,000 beeper, one of the keys to the National Football League’s instant-replay system put into use this season, didn’t work the way it was supposed to and led to a controversial touchdown Saturday night in the Raiders’ 24-19 exhibition victory over the Dallas Cowboys, officials said.

The mishap in the game at the Coliseum plagued what was to be a showcase for the new system designed to end bad calls.

Raider receiver Dokie Williams caught a pass from quarterback Jim Plunkett over Dallas defensive back Manny Hendrix, but Hendrix was able to knock the ball loose as Williams went out of bounds.

Side judge Nathan Jones, who didn’t have a clear view of the play, ruled the pass complete.

An NFL official watching the instant replay equipment in the press box saw the mistake and tried to signal the officiating crew to overrule them on the play, a league official said.

But he was unable to reach the umpire, the only official on the field with a beeper. The catch stood, and the Raiders scored three plays later when Plunkett hit Steve Strachan with a 14-yard touchdown pass.

An NFL announcement in the press box called it “a malfunction of the beeper system.” NFL spokesman Don Weiss later said the umpire simply failed to hear the beeper.

“Other times he thought he was hearing it, but he really wasn’t,” Weiss said. “There were obviously some kinks in the system, but that’s what the preseason is for.”

The incident left Cowboy President and General Manager Tex Schramm upset, although he said his unhappiness was tempered because the game was only an exhibition.

Schramm, who has pushed hard for the NFL to install the instant-replay system, said, “Well, if nothing else, it shows why this has been needed for a long time. If everything is working right, that play wouldn’t stand.”

Cowboy Coach Tom Landry said he didn’t realize what had happened until after the game.