Cowboys don't challenge after refs miss tipped ball on roughing the punter call

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ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The Dallas Cowboys didn't challenge after getting penalized for roughing the punter, even though Ryan Flournoy got his fingertips on the ball before Marist Liufau crashed into Philadelphia's Braden Mann.

The call kept alive the Eagles' second touchdown drive of the first quarter on their way to a 21-point lead Sunday before Dallas rallied for a 24-21 victory on Brandon Aubrey's game-ending field goal.

NFL vice president of instant replay Mark Butterworth told a pool reporter that replay assist didn't have immediate access to what he called an “enhanced replay” showing Flournoy getting a piece of the football. Flournoy was rushing at an angle before Liufau ran into Mann while coming straight at him.

Without replay assist, the Cowboys were on their own in determining whether to challenge. Coach Brian Schottenheimer said he and game management coordinator Ryan Feder didn't believe they had strong enough evidence that Flournoy touched the ball.

“So we looked, we talked, Flo said, ‘I hit it,’ and when (Feder) and I talked about it, he goes, ‘I don’t think it’s clear that they’re going to turn it over,’” Schottenheimer said. “So we made the decision, and sounds like that they have evidence that he did touch it. Kudos to Flo for making that play. And the worst thing Flo could have done was lie. So he didn’t lie, and I trust him.”

Butterworth said officials always check replays when roughing the punter is called to make sure the ball wasn't touched. He said the clearer replay from the Fox telecast came after the game had resumed.

“We don’t have access to that enhanced shot until they show it,” Butterworth said. “By then, it was too late. If we would have had that shot previously, we would have been able to assist prior to the ball being snapped.”

Schottenheimer said Flourney was adamant about touching the ball, but the coach didn't think that would be enough to win the challenge.

“We just didn’t feel like it was conclusive,” Schottenheimer said. “And even if he says he hit it, which he probably did, if they’re not going to see it or if we can’t see it, they’re probably not going to see it, either. So that’s why we decided not to challenge it.”

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