3 awful calls from refs that wrecked Cowboys momentum in humbling loss vs Bills

2. DeMarcus Lawrence roughing the passer on Josh Allen

This happened on the first possession of the game, so it foreshadowed a dreadful afternoon of refereeing.

On third down, the Cowboys generated pressure on Josh Allen and forced a throw-away out of the back of the end zone. It was a great stand by Dallas, which had zero answers for James Cook and the Bills running game, but the refs put the offense back on the field by flagging DeMarcus Lawrence for roughing the passer.

The replay shows that Lawrence barely grazed Allen. He didn't extend an arm or dive on the quarterback with his full bodyweight -- like what a Buffalo defender did to Dak Prescott in the third quarter.

He simply shoved Allen, as defensive linemen are prone to do after QBs release the ball. However, Allen, who has a reputation of being a flopper, flailed backwards and baited the refs into throwing the flag.

What's even worse is that Dallas pass rusher Dorance Armstrong was blatantly held on the play. If anything, there should have been offsetting penalties -- not a 15-yard penalty that gave Buffalo a fresh set of downs in the red zone.

Sure enough, the Bills went on to score a touchdown to take a 7-0 lead.