How close did the Green Bay Packers come to sending their NFL wild-card game against the San Francisco 49ers into overtime Sunday evening?

Ever so close. This is a game of inches, cruel, cruel inches…

The kick by Phil Dawson sailed between the outstretched arms of Davon House, whose leap was perfectly timed . Had he succeeded in blocking the kick, the game would have headed to overtime, another overtime on the ridiculously frigid tundra of Lambeau Field. As the ball was snapped, House ran unimpeded toward the kick and stretched out for the block. Textbook. Except the ball went between his arms, the kick was good and the 49ers ran off with a 23-20 victory.

Oh, and one other thing: there was a reason House was in such great position. He was offside on the play. The 49ers, naturally, declined the penalty.

H/T SB Nation for the GIF.