After two days to clear his head from the sting of the Dallas Cowboys being eliminated from the playoffs, Dak Prescott is apologizing for the comments he made regarding the officials from Sunday's loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Cowboys fans were throwing objects onto the field that initially appeared to be in the direction of the players, which was later confirmed the fans were targeting the officials.
Prescott was against any objects being thrown at his teammates, but didn't say the same regarding the officials when he was corrected about whom the fans were targeting. That led to a series of tweets apologizing for his comments on social media roughly 48 hours later.
I deeply regret the comments I made regarding the officials after the game on Sunday.
I was caught up in the emotion of a disappointing loss and my words were uncalled for and unfair.
— Dak Prescott (@dak) January 19, 2022
I hold the NFL Officials in the highest regard and have always respected their professionalism and the difficulty of their jobs.
The safety of everyone who attends a game or participates on the field of a sporting event is a very serious matter.
— Dak Prescott (@dak) January 19, 2022
That was a mistake on my behalf, and I am sorry.
— Dak Prescott (@dak) January 19, 2022
Prescott's frustration from the defeat stemmed from the Cowboys quarterback saying he was hit from behind by umpire Ramon George, thinking he also got the snap off in time after he executed a quarterback draw with no timeouts left and 14 seconds on the clock. The time expired before the umpire could set the ball, costing Dallas the game. Dallas lost 23-17 to San Francisco, 24 yards away from one final shot at the end zone.
Fans unhappy with the call threw objects on the field as the players were heading into the locker room, which Prescott was upset over their actions.
"It's sad. You're talking about a team, you're talking about men coming out each and every day of their lives and give everything to this sport, give everything to this game of football," Prescott said. "Nobody wants to succeed more than we want to succeed. I understand fans and the word fan for fanatic, I get that.
"But to know everything that we put into this, day in and day out, try our hardest, nobody comes into the game wanting or expecting to lose, and for people to react that way when you're supposed to be a supporter and be with us through thick and thin, that's tough."
The next reporter informed Prescott that they were aiming at the referees, to which Prescott responded "Credit to them then. Credit to them." When Prescott was asked for clarification on his comments, he responded "yeah" initially and then was asked to describe his feeling on how they officiated the game.
"I mean, if they weren't at us and the fans felt the same way as us, and if that's what they were doing it for, then yeah, I guess that's why the fans…I guess it's why the refs took off and got out of there so fast,"
