Two questions about The Pick

[ctpatsfan77]

http://www.nfl.com/rulebook/safety2


Examples of Non-Safety:

(a) Player intercepts a pass with both feet inbounds in the field of play and his momentum carries him into his own end zone. Ball is put in play at spot of interception.

(b) Player intercepts a pass in his own end zone and is downed in the end zone, even after recovering in the end zone. Impetus came from passing team, not from defense. (Touchback)



If Butler had taken a knee in, or was immediately tackled in the end zone, the ball would have been placed at the spot of the interception.

Put slightly differently, the result would have been at best the same and arguably worse, since he intercepted at the 1 and ended up at the 2.