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Brutal Dak Prescott referee gaffe ends Cowboys-49ers playoff battle

By Adam Weinrib

ARLINGTON, TEXAS - JANUARY 16: Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys looks to pass against the San Francisco 49ers during the second half in the NFC Wild Card Playoff game at AT&T Stadium on January 16, 2022 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - JANUARY 16: Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys looks to pass against the San Francisco 49ers during the second half in the NFC Wild Card Playoff game at AT&T Stadium on January 16, 2022 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
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How…does this…happen at the NFL level? Only the Dallas Cowboys. Only. The Dallas Cowboys.

America’s Team had seemingly gotten the benefit of a stunning sequence of breaks during the final minutes of their showdown with the San Francisco 49ers.

After trimming a 23-7 deficit to 23-17, Dallas was given one more drive, and could theoretically have held the ball, punished the Niners’ suddenly-injured defense (Fred Warner and Nick Bosa were both out), and walked off with a 24-23 victory. Unfortunately, one last Dak Prescott heave slipped in and out of Cedrick Wilson’s outstretched hand, giving San Francisco the ball back (though Dallas held all their timeouts).

Then, the madness began, and the flags continued.

On second down, with two chances to stop the clock remaining, the Cowboys were called for defensive holding on a run play. Then, Deebo Samuel nearly passed the first down marker to clinch a win, but was ruled down short after a lengthy review, giving Jimmy Garoppolo a final shot to QB sneak a few inches … except for a false start.

The play never got off the ground. A Cowboys Hail Mary was en route, with just over 30 seconds remaining. Until Dak Prescott, past midfield … took off and failed to account for the referee’s necessary role in the proceedings.

One final mental gaffe and physical impossibility, and the Cowboys’ season had ended.

Dak Prescott’s rush attempt ended Cowboys’ season

As Tony Romo made extremely clear, the referee had to touch the ball before Prescott could clock it. Prescott, instead, seemed to believe he could just hand the ball to the center and reset things himself.

Seriously … how does this happen? How does no one have the right answer under pressure here?

Once Prescott took off, there was no way out.

Uncomfortable collision with the sprinting referee aside, the blame for this moment falls on Prescott’s shoulders — as well as Mike McCarthy’s, for failing to prepare his roster for an occurrence like this.

If only Coach Romo had been down on the sidelines. He was all over it.

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