Monday night’s matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Cincinnati Bengals lost most of its luster with both teams struggling throughout the regular season in 2024. While the Bengals were favorites against the Cowboys in Week 14, Dallas appeared ready to steal an unlikely victory away from Cincinnati late in the fourth quarter.
After the Bengals were forced to punt, Cowboys linebacker Nick Vigil blocked the ensuing punt before Dallas fumbled away a potential game-winning possession like only they could. The NFL world reacted accordingly to Dallas’ costly blunder on Monday night.
NFL World Reacts to Cowboys’ Costly Blunder in Loss to Bengals
After Vigil blocked the punt, Cowboys backup cornerback Amani Oruwariye touched the football, allowing the Bengals to recover it and regain possession with under two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
Cincinnati marched down the field and scored the game-winning touchdown on the ensuing possession.
Albert Breer of The MMQB perfectly summed up the mind-numbing sequence with his caption to a video of the play on X (formerly Twitter): “What a mess,” Breer said.
What a mess. pic.twitter.com/8gcLPhlb9g
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) December 10, 2024
Oruwariye’s mistake brought back memories of a major blunder in Dallas’ history. Pro Football Network’s David Bearman called back to former Cowboys defensive tackle Leon Lett’s mistake against the Miami Dolphins in 1993.
The Dolphins lined up to attempt a game-winning field goal against the Cowboys in the game’s final seconds. Dallas surprisingly blocked the field goal, but Lett attempted to pick up the football, ultimately making it a live ball once again.
Miami recovered the football, and Dolphins kicker Pete Stoyanovich nailed his second attempt at the game-winning field goal. Former Cowboys QB and Monday Night Football commentator Troy Aikman recalled Lett’s notorious play following Oruwariye’s mistake in Week 14 during the broadcast as well.
Leon Lett would be proud
— David Bearman (@DavidBearmanPFN) December 10, 2024
Eitan Benezra of ESPN echoed Bearman’s thoughts, likening Dallas’ blunder on Monday night against the Bengals to Lett’s unforgettable mistake over 30 years ago. Luckily for both the Cowboys and Oruwariye, this play likely won’t be remembered in the same way.
Dallas is now 5-8 following its loss in Week 14, essentially putting the postseason out of reach for the Cowboys. Therefore, Oruwariye’s costly mistake won’t have much of an impact on Dallas’ already low expectations at this point in the regular season.
Leon Lett!!!!!
Los Cowboys!!!!!
— Eitan Benezra (@EitanBenezra) December 10, 2024
Sports Illustrated’s senior fantasy analyst Michael Fabiano summed up Dallas’ late-game failure perfectly following the botched blocked punt. “Typical Cowboys,” Fabiano said.
It’s also worth noting that Fabiano is a long-time Cowboys fan, therefore he understands the team’s struggles throughout most of his adulthood. Monday night’s blunder was just the most recent mistake in a long line of letdowns for America’s Team.
Typical Cowboys.
— Michael Fabiano (@Michael_Fabiano) December 10, 2024
Cowboys All-Pro pass rusher Micah Parsons appeared frustrated on Dallas’ sideline after the Bengals marched down the field and scored the game-winning touchdown. Parsons and Dallas’ defense were put in an awful spot following the botched blocked punt.
While Parsons has recently stated his optimism about the Cowboys and how they were going to make a late-season turnaround, those thoughts are likely gone after Week 14.
Micah Parsons, justifiably so, is absolutely beside himself, my goodness #DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/SFO8t708Tv
— Kevin Gray Jr. (@KevinGraySports) December 10, 2024
Oruwariye’s mistake confused The Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr., the publication’s senior writer covering the Bengals. Dehner appeared speechless after the Cowboys’ blunder when it appeared as though Dallas would steal a victory away from the Bengals late in the game.
“No way. Wow. What a FUBAR by the Cowboys,” Dehner said — for those that don’t know, you might want to look up the acronym for FUBAR, as it perfectly describes what we all witnessed from the Cowboys late in the fourth quarter.