Lions’ Jamaal Williams hits referee making penalty call in head with ball

NFL referees take their job very seriously…even if they have footballs thrown at them. 

During the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys game, the referee was calling a holding penalty against the Lions when running back Jamaal Williams flipped the ball at the referee, and it hit him in the head. 

But, completely unfazed, the referee continued to make the call, sending the Lions back 10 yards while Williams was trying to apologize for hitting him in the head. 

Another referee came in to confront Williams on his decision-making there, but nothing else transpired. 

The referees in this game had another good moment earlier in the game when one noticed that Amon-Ra St. Brown, the Lions’ top receiver, seemed unstable after taking a big hit from the Cowboys. A referee swooped right in to make sure the Lions took him off the field and enter concussion protocol. 

LIONS’ AMON-RA ST. BROWN RULED OUT WITH CONCUSSION AFTER TAKING BIG HIT VS. COWBOYS

After tests, St. Brown was ruled out the rest of the game with a concussion. 

It’s a tough job for referees in this league, and you truly never know what’s going to happen. Even errant throws while trying to make a call can be dangerous. 

DAK PRESCOTT RETURNING THIS WEEK AFTER MISSING LAST FIVE GAMES WITH THUMB INJURY

The game itself had 15 total penalties called, eight against the Lions and seven against the Cowboys. Dallas would end up winning this one, scoring two fourth-quarter touchdowns in the return of Dak Prescott at quarterback for a 24-6 victory. 

Prescott finished the game with 207 yards with one touchdown pass, while running back Ezekiel Elliott had two touchdown runs with 57 total yards on the ground. Peyton Hendershot, the rookie tight end, caught Prescott’s only touchdown pass. 

On the Lions side, Jared Goff had 228 yards but two interceptions and no touchdowns.