It makes no sense to me that a distribution from a defined benefit plan that is eligible for rollover to a qualified retirement account would be reported on a Form 1099-NEC rather than on a Form 1099-R. Form 1099-NEC reports compensation for services performed by an independent contractor, not anything that is eligible for rollover. That compensation would need to be reported as income from self-employment and the net earnings would be compensation that could support an IRA contribution, but that would not be a rollover.
If the plan was instead a nonqualified deferred compensation plan, that distribution should have been reported in box 11 of a W-2, not a a Form 1099-NEC, but such a distribution would not be eligible for rollover.
