A Raiders point in the third quarter of their Thanksgiving day game against the Cowboys turned into a wild brawl, leading to two ejections and a bloody referee in a game that became more than a little cheap.
When AJ Cole’s point sailed out of bounds, Roderic Teamer and Kelvin Joseph continued to push as they stumbled off the field to the back of the Las Vegas bench. Joseph pushed teammates to the turf before the Raiders safety jumped up and pushed back, with nearly two dozen other players making their way over to the struggle in the process.
Footage shown after everyone separated had a shot from referee Tom Hill – who was working on his 355th career game on Thursday, according to his pro football reference page – with a bloody spot on his chin, though it was unclear at what point during the brawl Hill’s cut opened.
After footage showed the cut covered with a bandage.
Subsequently, a post-game segment on ESPN showed Dallas defensive make Tristan Hill punching the Raiders guard John Simpson while the teams met on the field. Las Vegas defensive end Maxx Crosby, who finished with one make and one quarterback hit, starting to move to Hill when the video cut, and a subsequent shot showed about eight players pushing into a scrum near midfield.
Dallas and Las Vegas combined for 28 penalties and 276 penalty yards, which were season-hikes for both teams, according to the Associated Press, in the Raiders’ 36-33 overweight win, snapping their three-game losing streak and bumping their record back Over .500 for the season.
An expensive third-down pass interference penalty on Anthony Brown – his fourth such penalty of the game, with all four coming on third-down plays – helped the Raiders turn a 3 and 18 into a first down and eventual field goal, which Daniel Carlson Kicked off 29 yards for the win.
The Cowboys have rebounded after scoring just nine points in last week’s loss to the Chiefs, but still lost for the third time in four games to fall to 7-4 this season. They travel to New Orleans and face the Saints on next week’s Thursday night football, the first of three consecutive road games for Dallas as they have a two-game advantage over the Eagles in the NFC East. Las Vegas hosts Washington next weekend.
