Cowboys QB Under Fire for Post-Game Ref Comments

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott might be taking more criticism for his comments following a loss on Sunday than for the game itself. Short version: Dallas fans thought the refs blew a call on the final play that cost them a chance to win. When informed that some people tossed trash at the referees, Prescott responded that it was a "credit to them." The remark isn't going over well:

• Prescott "should be ashamed of himself," writes Jarrett Bell at USA Today. For "one of the NFL’s marquee headliners, a man who has almost always presented himself as a class act, to suddenly condone violence was so tacky."

• "It was very disappointing to see him delve into the gutter, make excuses and applaud the angry and classless fans at AT&T Stadium who tossed plastic bottles at the officials as they left the field," writes Clarence E. Hill Jr. at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Hill himself gave Prescott a chance to clarify his comments at the press conference, but Prescott only doubled down on why fans had a right to be angry. "I know he is better than this," writes Hill.
• More forgiving of the statement is Robin Lundberg at Sports Illustrated. "I’m willing to forgive his comments about fans throwing things at the officials afterwards as a bad lapse in judgment ... but he needs to own the loss." Prescott is blaming the refs, but the QB messed up, too, writes Lundberg. Because "Dak didn’t hand the ball to the official for the spot, it’s his fault they didn’t get another play off and ended Dallas's playoffs." (See this tweeted video of the play. Broadcaster Tony Romo agrees Prescott made a mistake.)
• Less forgiving is a post at Barstool Sports, which accuses Prescott of condoning "barbaric behavior." It adds: "A great leader will always point the blame first upon themselves after failure. A coward will just stand back and gladly let others take the blame like a total weasel."

(More Dallas Cowboys stories.)