IRVING, Texas -- Penalties have been an issue for the Dallas Cowboys whether Bill Parcells, Wade Phillips or Jason Garrett has been the coach.
The Cowboys concluded their ninth straight year with at least 100 penalties, coming in with 105 accepted penalties for 839 yards. The yardage total is the lowest since they had 802 in 2011.
But why did it seem like the penalties were not as much as an issue this year as in the past? I’d go with the 12-4 record. Winning can hide some things.
Brandon Carr led the Cowboys with 12 penalties, seven of which were declined. He had five defensive pass interference penalties, two defensive holding calls and one of the following: unnecessary roughness, illegal use of hands, illegal block above the waist, offensive holding, and unsportsmanlike conduct.
At the Nov. 16 bye week, left tackle Tyron Smith led the Cowboys with seven penalties, but he was flagged just twice in the final six games.
Here is the player breakdown of the penalties (declined penalties):
12 – Carr (7)
9 – Smith (1)
7 – Tony Romo, Orlando Scandrick
6 – Travis Frederick
5 – Ronald Leary, Jason Witten
4 – Sterling Moore (1), Doug Free, C.J. Spillman (1), J.J. Wilcox (1)
3 – DeMarco Murray, Zack Martin, Tyler Patmon, Jeremy Mincey (1), Anthony Hitchens, Bruce Carter (1)
2 – Dwayne Harris, Rolando McClain, George Selvie, Morris Claiborne, Barry Church, Cameron Lawrence (1)
1 – Tyrone Crawford, Dez Bryant, Micah Pellerin, Devin Street, Tyler Clutts, Jack Crawford, Justin Durant, Gavin Escobar, James Hanna, Chris Jones, Jermey Parnell, Kyle Wilber, DeMarcus Lawrence
