The Dallas Cowboys put together an absolute clunker against the Denver Broncos on Sunday as Dak Prescott and the offense looked out of sorts and the defense failed to be opportunistic like it had been so many times this season.
But the Cowboys did seem to have a potential game-altering opportunity taken away from them by what is, at the very least, a very questionable NFL rule.
The Broncos lined up to punt the ball on their first drive of the second half after appearing to go three-and-out. Cowboys wide receiver Malik Turner came up the middle and blocked Sam Martin's punt and the ball bounced off Dallas rookie Nahshon Wright's hands. Broncos linebacker Jonas Griffith snagged the ball and ran a few yards, but was tackled before the first-down marker.
Still, after a discussion between officials, the ball went back to the Broncos, who were awarded a first down because of an obscured rule. Said rule indicates if a punt is blocked and goes beyond the line of scrimmage, where it's touched by the receiving team beyond the line of scrimmage, the kicking team is eligible to recover the ball.
Essentially, the Broncos were awarded the ball back despite having their punt blocked. And while it bounced of Wright's hands, it certainly was not possessed by the rookie cornerback.
Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy, as you may expect, wasn't thrilled with how it played out, but did explain Dallas did know the rule.
"That would have been a huge momentum play for us, especially coming out of halftime," McCarthy told reporters after the game, as shared by the Cowboys. "You have a chance to reset your jaw and get back out there and you get three and out and blocked a punt. You're in scoring position. So, you know, you're on the board and maybe you do something with that momentum."
McCarthy indicated how he believed the instincts of Wright took over.
"We'll definitely learn from it. But, you know, we all understand what the rule is," McCarthy said.
He was asked if he agreed with the rule, and responded: "It doesn't matter. You're not going to solve anything today."
The Cowboys fell to 6-2 with the loss while the Broncos improved to 5-4.
