Fans call out Kyle Shanahan for "blatant plagiarism" after running Lions' play for George Kittle: "TD shouldn't count"

The Detroit Lions won their game against the Carolina Panthers earlier today and one of the highlight plays was a flea-flicker that involved two players in the backfield before the pass made it back to Jared Goff. The quarterback then found tight end Sam LaPorta for a touchdown.

What happened in the San Francisco 49ers' game against the Dallas Cowboys was pretty similar. It also involved two people in motion in the backfield after the snap before the flea flicker from Brock Purdy. This time, too, a tight end was the target as George Kittle got in for a score.

It immediately led to comparisons on social media. Users took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to point out the similarities between the two scores, with some accusing 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan of "plagiarism".

Here are some of the best reactions given below.

Screenshot of responses on X, formerly known as Twitter

San Francisco 49ers and Detroit Lions look like the teams to beat in the NFC

Beyond the similarities of the play, Kyle Shanahan and Dan Campbell are similar in other ways too. They are leading their teams to the pinnacle of the NFC with their calls.

On the back of three touchdowns by George Kittle, the San Francisco 49ers dismantled the Dallas Cowboys to hand them their second loss of the season. The 49ers improved to 5-0 and are tied with the Philadelphia Eagles with a perfect record.

But just behind them, the Detroit Lions are coming up nicely. They are 4-1 for the season and have complete control of the NFC North. The Minnesota Vikings and the Chicago Bears are both at 1-4 and the Packers can only reach 3-2 if they win against the Las Vegas Raiders tomorrow.

There is every chance that the 49ers and Lions will meet later in the playoffs the way they are playing. And Sam LaPorta and George Kittle might have a lot to say then too. If not them, Kyle Shanahan and Dan Campbell will likely have fancy plays dialed up for some of the other players instead.