NFL playoffs 2015: Reaction to Dallas-Detroit debacle continues

THE STORY around the NFL on this Monday morning continues to be the reaction to the picked up penalty flag that helped the Dallas Cowboys defeat the Detroit Lions on Sunday to advance to the divisional round of the playoffs. The shame of all of this mess is that despite, the anti-Cowboys feeling around these parts, you would like to simply be able to give them credit for what they accomplished Sunday. Hard to do that under the circumstances.

First, here is the explanation from referee Pete Morelli:

From @davebirkett, the pool report on the pass interference non-call in #Cowboys-#Lions pic.twitter.com/3usx2slWia

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 5, 2015

Here is some of the reaction to it:

NFC Wild Card: A Look at the "Non-call" in the Dallas-Detroit Game " Inside Football
Part of the problem is that instead of using crews to the extent possible, not a single member of today’s crew had worked together during the season, so there is a less than normal amount of trust and communication.

Inside Slant: Referee Pete Morelli had four potential penalties on key Lions-Cowboys play - NFL Nation Blog - ESPN
The idea here was to document and explain the usual smattering of ambiguous, controversial or otherwise debatable officiating calls from the NFL's wild-card weekend. What we got was a national outcry about one third-down play, featuring four potential penalties that all went uncalled by referee Pete Morelli and his crew during the Dallas Cowboys' 24-20 comeback victory over the Detroit Lions.

Sorting the Sunday Pile: NFL needs to explain non-flag in Lions-Cowboys - CBSSports.com
The NFL has a problem on its hands. Namely: how do you explain to Lions fans the decision of the refs to throw a flag on the Cowboys for pass interference but then pick up the flag and ignoring any explanation? Because you can't, even though Pete Morelli's crew did just that on Sunday night.

Bell: If it looks like pass interference, it's pass interference
Memo to referee Pete Morelli and his crew: If it looks like pass interference, it's pass interference.

NFL hot reads: Lions, not refs, deserve blame for loss

Refs aside, Jim Caldwell helped the Lions lose to the Cowboys - SBNation.com

Cowboys-Lions Final Score: Dallas gets help from the referees to beat Detroit, 24-20 - Bleeding Green Nation