Did Carr's crucial incomplete pass to Cooper hit a camera wire?

Just when the Oakland Raiders appeared set to break through in their attempt to stage a late comeback against the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night, a would-be touchdown strike from Derek Carr to a wide-open Amari Cooper fell incomplete in a peculiar way.

The standout receiver appeared to get turned around after getting behind the secondary and attempting to track down the pass. Asked about the sequence after the game, Cooper told reporters that the wind caused the ball to drift back into the middle of the field.

Speculation later arose about whether Carr's pass could have come into contact with the Spidercam cable hanging above for the prime-time broadcast.

Such a circumstance would certainly explain the odd reaction from Cooper, and perhaps even more so than a gust of wind, but NBC says it's simply not possible.

"The overhead camera is positioned behind the line of scrimmage, so the cables would not be in play," spokesman Dan Masonson told Jason Dachman of The Sports Video Group.

The NFL's response, for what it's worth, seems far less definitive. According to a report from ESPN's Ed Werder, the league couldn't conclusively determine whether the pass struck a wire above the playing surface. The fact that the receiver didn't react as if there had been interference was noted along with his significant adjustment.

Cooper likely would have walked into the end zone had he brought down the deep ball in stride, putting the Raiders a two-point conversion away from tying the game.

Kansas City instead came away with the convincing win, moving into first place in the AFC West.

Here's a look at the play in question. You be the judge.