It’s difficult to imagine a more chaotic ending than what unfolded on the final play of Sunday’s NFC Wild Card matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers.
You had the Cowboys, in all desperation, trying to get off one final play only to have the umpire come swooping in to stop the snap and end the game. It was nuts.
While everyone watching at home had the benefit of hearing the explanation (the umpire needed to physically spot the ball), the nearly 100,000 at AT&T Stadium only saw a ref making contact with Dak Prescott and the game ending with no explanation. So, yeah, they were upset.
But that doesn’t excuse the ugly scene that played out as the refs were sprinting for the tunnel. Fans were throwing trash at them.
Probably actually throwing stuff at the refs, not that this is any better of a look for Cowboys fans. https://t.co/yJVG6twLql
— Kevin McGuire (@KevinOnCFB) January 17, 2022
The original tweet claimed that fans were throwing trash at players, but they were almost definitely targeting the officials — not that it makes the behavior any better. A bad throw at the end did hit DeMarcus Lawrence, but Lawrence also added that he felt the refs were the intended target.
DeMarcus Lawrence tells us he thought the fans throwing things at the field were aiming for the referees, not the Cowboys.
That’s a hell of a sentence to type.
— David Helman (@HelmanDC) January 17, 2022
Still, it wasn’t the way anyone wants to see fans behave. There’s no place for that.
