Simply, the lines on the field make passes that leave the hands just before a line and are caught just after it look worse, even though often they are still passed backwards. There can also be times when a passer has been hit as he or she passes the ball, adding to the optical illusion because often the pass is caught well ahead of where it left the hands, and the passer has been prevented from travelling downfield with the ball.
"Forward passes have been a problem forever and a day," Annesley says.
"The path of the ball across the ground is irrelevant. It's about whether the player who releases the ball has released it in a backwards or flat direction."