“It’s despicable how badly the refs screwed the Lions there.”
That’s a direct quote from Lions radio broadcast sideline reporter, and former Pro Bowl offensive lineman, T.J. Lang from the fourth quarter of Sunday’s loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
Buy Lions WireThe worst part of Lang’s statement? There were so many bad calls that it’s hard to pinpoint which officiating gaffe he was referring to.
It could have been the play where DE Aidan Hutchinson was victimized of both an illegal hands to the face and a hold on the same play. No flag. It might have been an obvious block-in-the-back call on a long Cowboys punt return, an infraction that directly created the big lane for Kavonte Turpin to exploit. No flag.
The play Lang was actually referring to was one where the Lions RB was picked up and bodyslammed to the AT&T Stadium turf well after the whistle, a play that had play-by-play man Dan Miller apoplectic in shock at the obvious missed call.
Sure, the Lions made plenty of mistakes on their own. They were indeed guilty of several of the penalties called against them, notably two key infractions by LB Alex Anzalone on the game-deciding Dallas touchdown. That drive followed Jared Goff’s second interception of the game, both on late throws to covered receivers. However, that second INT from Goff doesn’t happen if the officials make the call.
Dallas sealed the game with another big play. Linebacker Sam Williams, the same man guilty of the post-whistle suplex, stole the ball from Goff and turned it right back to the Cowboys offense. The Cowboys, to their credit, kept playing hard and the demoralized Lions did not. Dallas tacked on another touchdown, then another strip-sack, to make the score look considerably more lopsided than the game itself really was.
Goff wasn’t the only culprit of soul-crushing mistakes for Detroit. Running back Jamaal Williams fumbled at the goal line with the score 10-6 and the game very much in control. It was Williams’ second fumble of the game, both of them at terrible junctures for the Lions offense.
It overshadows a game effort from the Lions defense. Detroit forced Dallas into two straight three-and-outs to start the game, the first time that’s happened to the Cowboys since 2019. Cornerback Jeff Okudah racked up 15 tackles, while Hutchinson added two more sacks–both of his own creation. It’s hard to ask for more from the defense when the offense gives the ball away five times in the second half and the officials give unusual latitude to the opponent time and again.
