Just past the halfway mark in a season that was seemingly spiraling out of control, the 2-6 Cowboys surprisingly played their best game of the year against the undefeated Steelers. Dallas found itself in unfamiliar territory by leading for most of the game, sometimes by double digits. In the end, though, it was the guys in the black jerseys with the yellow pants who prevailed… thanks in large part to the guys in the black and white jerseys with the yellow flags.
The Cowboys suffered key setbacks at critical moments late in the fourth quarter, as untimely penalties extended drives and improved field position for Ben Roethlisberger and the rallying Pittsburgh offense.
While the Cowboys themselves were ultimately responsible for letting this one slip away, the subject of officiating did come up during the players’ and coaches’ postgame conferences after the heartbreaking 24-19 loss in Arlington.
“The frustrating part is that it wasn’t in our control,” defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence told reporters. “I’m not the one to complain, but that was total B.S. on that last call. Hopefully, the NFL can take that into account, and we get better from it.”
Dallas was flagged seven times for 70 yards on the afternoon. Three of those infractions were called on the Cowboys defense in the fourth quarter. But it was the last of them- roughing the passer against linebacker Jaylon Smith- that Lawrence seemed to be referring to.
“Of course I’m talking about the penalty [on Jaylon],” Lawrence snapped when asked for specifics. “I don’t know where that came from, but that’s very unacceptable. Especially in a close game like that.”
On the play, Smith was one of a number of Cowboys defenders converging on Roethlisberger as the pocket collapsed around him. As the Steelers quarterback let the ball fly through heavy traffic, Smith’s hands went up, and although he was still engaged in a block, one of his arms made glancing contact with Roethlisberger’s head.
Roethlisberger’s pass fell incomplete. But instead of facing fourth-down deep in their own end, the penalty gifted the Steelers a new set of downs with four minutes left to play. Pittsburgh ultimately scored the go-ahead touchdown on the drive two minutes and 79 yards later.
After the game, Smith struggled to explain how the play could have resulted in a flag.
“Yeah… I mean… I didn’t… Really, you know… just questionable calls,” Smith told media members via conference call. “I really didn’t do anything; I was trying to pressure the quarterback and press the pocket, put my hands up when the ball was coming out, and that’s what it was. Questionable calls, like I said. We’ve just got to keep fighting. Got to keep fighting.”
It wasn’t the only nitpicky penalty to be called against Smith as the game came down to the final minutes. On the previous Steelers drive, the fourth-year linebacker was flagged for illegal contact with Pittsburgh receiver Chase Claypool. That penalty wiped out a strip sack by Tyrone Crawford and subsequent fumble recovery and 22-yard return by Aldon Smith.
“They thought that I hit him and was just crazy over-the-top holding,” Jaylon said later of that call. “Really, he just ran into me. That’s really what it was. A few questionable calls in the game, but for us, we’ve got to control what we can control.”
That was the overarching message from Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy, who acknowledged the officiating during the hard-fought game, but chose not to expound on it for reporters.
“You can write on it as much as you want. Go for it. I’m not going to,” the coach said in his postgame remarks. “Like I said to the football team, we need to focus on the things we can do better. What was called, what wasn’t called: we don’t have control of that. I think our players did a really good job of that. You want them playing with a lot of energy; obviously, it’s a physical football team that we played today. We expected a knock-down, drag-out type game. That’s what we prepared for. At the end of it, when you’re on the edge and guys are getting after it, you’ve just got to be disciplined through those spots. I’m saying that without seeing the actual tape; I haven’t had a chance to review it. We had some tough calls, and the timing of it was a real challenge.”
Coaches often dismiss “effort” penalties that come from players simply playing the game aggressively. Those come with the sport and are very different from mental lapses like lining up offsides or committing a false start. And officials frequently allow a certain amount of physicality, especially in the closing moments of a hard-fought battle. Broadcasters call it “letting them play.”
The Cowboys’ players, coaches, and fans watching the game can certainly make a Monday-morning case that it was the officials at AT&T Stadium who played… too large a role in the outcome of Sunday’s game.
Lawrence claims the defense didn’t get much of an explanation on the field from referee Tony Corrente’s crew… and he didn’t press for one.
“Once the refs make up their mind, they’re stuck with it,” Lawrence said. “Ain’t nothing you can really say. I mean, there are some things you can say, but they ain’t going to do nothing but cause you to get another penalty.”
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