Although it is undeniable that wide receiver CeeDee Lamb was key to the Dallas Cowboys snagging a narrow 27–23 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Lamb turned out to be a double-edged sword when it came to penalties. Not only did his infractions cost him a larger stat line, but they almost cost the Cowboys the game.

Sports commentator and former Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin has often praised Lamb’s skill, especially his dedication to proving himself worthy of Dallas’ iconic #88 jersey, which has been passed down to era-defining star wide receivers in the franchise. But according to a Nov. 8 clip shared on the official ‘The White House with Michael Irvin’ Instagram channel, Irvin did not mince his words when he criticized the Cowboys offense for their blunders.

“As you move through this game, what you have to do is tighten down the small things,” Irvin said. “…If you’re going to beat the better teams, you’ve got to clean that stuff up. And even at the end of the game when they scored that touchdown, Hawk and Le’Veon, I’m thinking, why not take one kneel down and take another 30 seconds off the clock before you’ve got a second, third, and fourth down to try to go score this touchdown. So little things like that. But they won the game, and I’ve got to give them credit.”

Irvin’s comments came in the wake of Dallas recording a season-high 14 flags in their Week 9 game, a vast majority of which involved the team’s offensive unit. The Cowboys’ offensive drives were chaotic, and at one point, inactive linebacker DeMarvion Overshown was also penalized for stepping onto the gridiron to join his teammates for an end-zone celebration. 

Despite recording 10 passes for 195 yards and a touchdown, Lamb was flagged for two pass-interference infractions and a false start. But his costliest fumble came in the fourth quarter, with Dallas leading 20-17. The #88 player caught a pass and ran down to the Colts’ 38-yard line before hitting the ground. Since defender Kenneth Harris did not touch him, he got up and continued running, extending the drive to the 13-yard line. However, he was finally tackled by Colts linebacker Austin Ajiake, which killed the momentum of a potentially game-sealing drive and left the Cowboys vulnerable to a late-game collapse.

Irvin did not limit his criticism to Lamb’s performance. The former Cowboys legend noted that such seemingly clumsy issues needed to be addressed and fine-tuned if the Cowboys wanted to remain playoff contenders.

He made it a point to emphasize that the only reason the offense got away with such mistakes was that they were facing a quarterback like Daniel Jones, who is known for his struggles with decision-making, consistency, and big-play generation, and has a propensity to be ranked near the bottom of the league in key passing metrics like QBR and passer rating.

“CeeDee Lamb not toe-tapping in the end zone right there, and now you’re settling for three instead of getting to four. And then that flip right after that, they throw a quick screen at their house, the Colts’ house. You know, you miss that tackle right there,” Irvin added in his analysis of the Cowboys game. “These are little things that you can’t do if you’re talking about really beating the better teams in the National Football League. You got away with it today because it’s the Colts and Daniel Jones was coming back to you.”

Lamb himself also seemed to be aware of the same issues. During the post-game press conference, he addressed the sheer number of penalties he incurred during the game. 

“But I think I had, like, three penalties alone in the second half, and a fumble,” Lamb said. “Personally, I gotta take a real good look. The numbers look crazy, but it could have been more. And I’m always thinking about what could have been. So, as for me, as a leader on this offense, I feel like I’ve got to be better in some realms, and just end the game.” 

Although quarterback Dak Prescott criticized the team for “unacceptable” penalties and praised Lamb post-game for his tenacity and detail-oriented mindset, the wide receiver took accountability for his mistakes, admitting that the lost yardage made the situation more challenging for his teammates.