NBC Denies Skycam Cables Deflected Derek Carr's Pass to Amari Cooper

Quarterback Derek Carr missed a wide-open Amari Cooper on a play in the fourth quarter of the Oakland Raiders' loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday, but NBC denied theories that the Skycam cable played a role in the miscue. 

The play in question occurred with less than 10 minutes left in the game and with Oakland trailing 21-13. Carr overthrew Cooper, but the ball appeared as though it may have changed trajectory:

Carr's brother, David Carr—who is a former No. 1 overall pick by the Houston Texans—blamed the camera wire that stretches across the field in midair:

In a statement to Jason Dachman of Sports Video Group, however, NBC Sports spokesman Dan Masonson denied that the Skycam wire had anything to do with the overthrow: "The overhead camera is positioned behind the line of scrimmage, so the cables would not be in play."

Per ESPN's Ed Werder, the NFL also weighed in on the play and felt Cooper's reaction was a sign the cables did not interfere:

Had Carr connected with Cooper on the pass, it likely would have been a touchdown, and Oakland could have tied the game with a successful two-point conversion.

Instead, the Raiders were unable to find the end zone, which resulted in a 21-13 loss that now has them behind the Chiefs for both the AFC West lead and the No. 1 seed in the AFC at 10-3 due to a tiebreaker.

If it had been determined the Skycam impacted the play, it stands to reason the NFL would have been forced to request modification of the technology during games.

Based on NBC's explanation, however, the theory may be little more than searching for a reason why the normally dominant Raiders offense was off-kilter Thursday night.

Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.