Lions Mistakes, Awful Officiating Doom Detroit's Playoff Run

The Detroit Lions put up a valiant fight but ultimately lost the franchise's second playoff game this century in Dallas, 24-20, to the host Cowboys. Detroit had its chances, but mistakes by both the Lions and the game officials doomed any hope for a victory.

Let's tackle the officiating first because that absolutely played a significant role in the Cowboys comeback. Referee Pete Morelli should be ashamed of himself and the performance of his crew because their ineptitude and clear crimes against fairness are egregious. 

This was a very common refrain after the game:

"

My #Lions were outscored by Dallas but they were beaten by officiating.

— Derek Mack (@Dmacali818) January 5, 2015"

In most cases, I would shout down people who blamed the officials. Not this time. I'm not a believer in conspiracy theories at all, but this game has me rethinking my stance. Honestly it does. And I'm not alone...

"

Invalidated penalty and Dez Bryant's non-penalized helmetless run onto the field should be addressed. Integrity issue. #DETvsDAL

— Andrew Brandt (@adbrandt) January 5, 2015"

"

NFL refs have to be seen and not heard. You cannot let a call change the outcome of a game. Completely unacceptable.

— Bryn Swartz (@eaglescentral) January 5, 2015"

Even Larry King chimed in:

"

One of the worst calls in playoff history made in #DETvsDAL game today. Pass interference called & then taken back. Unheard of & ridiculous!

— Larry King (@kingsthings) January 5, 2015"

The primary call in question came halfway through the fourth quarter, though it was far from the only officiating abomination down the stretch of this bitter loss. Detroit led 20-14 and was driving when the penalty that wasn't cost the Lions dearly.

"

Referee Pete Morelli Announces Pass Interference on Cowboys, then Says There Was No Foul http://t.co/JqW10asnTc pic.twitter.com/a7fiieYVQU

— Michael Shamburger (@mshamburger1) January 5, 2015"

Tight end Brandon Pettigrew got behind linebacker Anthony Hitchens, and Matthew Stafford's throw hit Hitchens in the back. The Cowboy never looked for the ball while running at Pettigrew with his hands up, which is obvious pass interference. And it was flagged as such.

Yet Morelli saw fit to wave off the flag...after he'd already announced the penalty and the rest of his crew was setting up the ball at the spot of the foul. Cowboys wideout Dez Bryant sprinted onto the field without his helmet on—a blatant unsportsmanlike conduct penalty—to scream at Morelli.

Instead of penalizing Bryant, as the national radio call on Westwood One exhorted, Morelli instead decided there was no penalty. There was no explanation offered during or after the game.

One of the issues here is the playoff officiating crews are different from the regular-season crews. There was a clear lack of communication at play here, and it's not something new either...

"

If we have to talk every single playoff game about how the officials are not familiar with each other, that's kind of a problem.

— Chris Burke (@ChrisBurke_SI) January 5, 2015"

This one call, while definitely impactful, could have been overcome. The ensuing Dallas offensive series is when it became legitimate to everyone watching to openly question the officiating integrity. 

"

That's not going to help NFL conspiracy theories.

— Brandon Alisoglu (@BrandonAlisoglu) January 5, 2015"

The drive was a textbook example of How to Get Away With Holding 101, and the Dallas offensive line proved excellent at teaching it. 

Take this play...

"

Maybe the holds by Tyron Smith & Ronald Leary cancelled each other out on the GW touchdown? pic.twitter.com/XCry2SoYwy

— Dave Dameshek (@Dameshek) January 5, 2015"

It was incredibly frustrating and not just for Lions fans. Social media exploded with conspiracy theories and harsh critiques of indefensibly awful officiating. 

"

The offensive line on Dallas that entire series got away with MURDER on holding calls. No clue what these refs are watching. #fixisin

— Evan Tarracciano (@Roto_Wizard) January 5, 2015"

Coach Jim Caldwell didn't bite real hard on the questions in his postgame press conference. But his tone was clearly an angry one for the normally reserved and measured head coach. When asked what explanation he got on the penalty that was not, he coolly responded: "Not a good enough one." He repeated that several times, his blood pressure visibly rising each time. 

He should probably appreciate the focus on the officiating because the way Detroit executed down the stretch does not reflect well on Caldwell's team. There were myriad mistakes from all three phases of the game, and it began with the first pass of the second half and the Lions leading 17-7. 

Stafford's pass was deflected into the air and picked off by Dallas linebacker Kyle Wilber. Even though Dallas failed to score when normally reliable kicker Dan Bailey missed the field goal, the lack of sharpness from the Lions persisted.

Star wideout Calvin Johnson was guilty of a bad false start on the final drive. Right tackle Cornelius Lucas had a terrible one earlier in the half. 

There was a strip-sack by Dallas defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, who in a bizarre turn fumbled the ball back to Detroit. Stafford missed an open Johnson over the middle. 

On a more macro level, Detroit got away from the strategy which propelled it into an early 14-0 lead. 

"

Lions called runs on 50% of their first-quarter plays, helping them to 14-0 lead. They called runs on 24% of plays the rest of the game

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) January 5, 2015"

Defensively, missed tackles plagued Detroit. One in particular by linebacker DeAndre Levy really hurt:

"

Yep. RT @AndrewJStover: Simple fact remains that Levy's missed tackle turned a fourth-and-3 at midfield to first-and-goal at the 8.

— Kyle Meinke (@kmeinke) January 4, 2015"

The Lions missed tackles on throws to Cole Beasley and Dez Bryant too. Star running back DeMarco Murray found more success against Detroit's vaunted defensive front too, exploding through wider holes and running with more purpose.

Then there were the special teams gaffes. Return specialist Jeremy Ross probably played his way off the roster with a dubious decision to run a kickoff out of the end zone. 

"

Don't ask me what Jeremy Ross was doing there because I don't have an answer for you. #DETvsDAL

— Tim Twentyman (@ttwentyman) January 5, 2015"

He's made similar ponderous decisions in recent games, but none was more costly than this one. Oh yeah, he fumbled (and recovered it) earlier in the game too on another poor return effort.

Punter Sam Martin uncorked one of the worst punts you'll ever see immediately after the controversial non-penalty.

"

And now a shank from Sam Martin - 10-yd punt. #DETvsDAL

— Paula Pasche (@paulapasche) January 5, 2015"

That sequence of events was pivotal. After not getting the first down, the Lions still had 4th-and-1 at the Dallas 46 while holding a 20-17 lead with 8:25 on the clock. 

Initially the offense stayed on the field, but there was no intention of going for it; Stafford was instructed to try and draw the Cowboys offside, but they didn't bite. 

"

Lions try to draw Cowboys offside, but instead take a delay of game.

— Josh Katzenstein (@jkatzenstein) January 5, 2015"

On the next drive, Dallas coach Jason Garrett got aggressive on fourth down. His gamble paid off where Caldwell's playing it safe backfired. Tony Romo hit tight end Jason Witten over the middle on 4th-and-6 as he laid waste to safety James Ihedigbo's weak coverage. 

When plays needed to be made, Dallas made them. Detroit did not. Awful officiating didn't help. That's the Twitter-friendly summation of the final quarter, one which will sting in Detroit for a long time. 

The Lions had chances to secure the first playoff victory since 1991 but came up short. While the men in black-and-white stripes played a role, Detroit squandered opportunities and executed too poorly to win a game of this magnitude. 

All statistics are from ESPN's box score. You can interact with the author on Twitter @JeffRisdon.