Unless something falls onto the road right in front of you, and you have to guess whether it will roll or move and which way you might want to go which takes time even with plenty of following distance. If I'm guessing which way I might need to go to avoid an object in front of me signaling is the least important thing. People behind me can slow down when I slam on the brakes and start swerving.
Apparently everyone things all debris in the road is stationary. Stopping distance between the car in front is based on it slowing down over a distance as opposed to stationary or relatively stationary debris which is a lot less distance.