The Cowboys have a penalty problem.
With 108 flags thrown against them, they only trail Seattle among the NFL’s 32 teams. Of the 90 penalties officially charged to them (removing declined and offsetting ones), they are just one penalty away from the top spot. Their 764 yards against places them in the top-three most yards penalized.
It’s a leader list no one wants to be on, and a sign Dallas is often making things more difficult on both sides of the ball than they need to be.
Yet not all penalties are created equal. Some penalties are more damaging than others and some are unavoidable, perhaps even occassionally preferred. In the case of mismatches, sometimes a player needs to commit a penalty to minimize the damage.
For instance, a defensive holding call in the secondary might result in five-yards and an automatic first down, but if a defensive back is about to get torched by someone like Tyreek Hill or D.K. Metcalf, the penalty is probably worth it. A holding call by an OT may cost the offense 10 yards, but if an explosive pass rusher like Micah Parsons or Nick Bosa are on a collision course with the QB, a hold is probably worth it.
As long as there are elite players in the NFL and cunning coaches scheming to find mismatches, there are going to be unavoidable penalties.