As the Cowboys attempted to mount a comeback against the Lions on Thursday Night Football, their efforts were thwarted in part because of a controversial offensive pass interference call on tight end Jake Ferguson.
Early in the fourth quarter, the Cowboys finally came within one possession of the Lions with a touchdown that made the score 30-27. The Lions then extended their lead to 37-27 with another touchdown.
The Cowboys got the ball back again midway through the fourth quarter, and were driving down the field. They got into the red zone, and were facing third-and-3 from the Lions’ 11-yard line with just under four minutes remaining. Quarterback Dak Prescott threw to tight end Jake Ferguson, who was unable to come down with the football as a flag was thrown. Surprisingly, Ferguson was called for offensive pass interference, even though he didn’t appear to illegally contact or push off the defender.
Prime Video rules analyst Terry McAulay was not a fan of the call. He said, “I just see him kind of swimming through. I don’t see offensive pass interference. He swims through, which is perfectly legal, and then gets grabbed. I don’t see offensive pass interference at all.”
Here's another look at the offensive pass interference called on the Cowboys. The rules analyst on the broadcast strongly disagrees with the call pic.twitter.com/G3BSLBKWAI
— Rate the Refs (@Rate_the_Refs) December 5, 2025
Other people tuning into the game were also not fans of the call.
Absolutely ridiculous offensive PI on Jake Ferguson
— Alec Nolan (@AlecOnFOX7) December 5, 2025
What the hell? This is terrible #cowboys pic.twitter.com/NFZ0dZHPWW
Offensive pass interference on @dallascowboys ?? Terrible call that affects the game huge! Would have been first and goal, instead, 4th down. Ferguson swam through which TV official agreed is perfectly legal. #TNF #dallascowboys pic.twitter.com/gN5BN6rRRf
— Kevin Kelley (@coachkelley1) December 5, 2025
How was that offensive pass interference???
— Cameron Magruder (@ScooterMagruder) December 5, 2025
Serious question
WAS THAT CALL A JOKE? NASTY SWIM MOVE THEN GETS TACKLED? AND ITS OFFENSIVE PI!#DallasCowboys #OnePride pic.twitter.com/k19GarydK1
— Andy from Austin (@AndyFromAustin) December 5, 2025
HOW IS THAT OFFENSIVE PI??????
— m (@downbadbears) December 5, 2025
Ultimately the penalty ended up getting declined and the Cowboys kicked a field goal to lower the Lions’ lead to seven. On the ensuing drive, the Lions scored another touchdown on a Jahmyr Gibbs run to go up 44-30 and ended up winning the game by that score.
This was certainly not the first questionable call in the game. Early in the matchup, the Lions appeared to sack Prescott in his own end zone for a safety, but the call was overturned after the officials ruled Prescott had the ball out of the end zone when the Lions initially made contact with him.
Fortunately, the right team came out with the win. The Lions ultimately deserved the victory after putting together a better performance all-around while the Cowboys committed three turnovers and allowing five sacks. In what was a crucial game for both teams looking to keep up in the NFC playoff picture, the Lions rightfully came out of top.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Fans Rip Refs for Controversial Offensive Pass Interference Call on Cowboys’ Jake Ferguson.
