The Dallas Cowboys beating the Oakland Raiders wasn’t much of a shock to anyone, but the way things happened, including the primitive first down check and Derek Carr fumbling the ball before the goalline made it all the more dramatic.

Unlike the Patriots game, the officials didn’t make a mistake by checking for the Cowboys first down. They just looked like idiots by doing it with a piece of paper. On the other hand, Carr fumbling the ball out of bounds was a bigger case of incompetence.

At 8-6, the Dallas Cowboys are very much in the picture of the playoffs, although it’s not completely in their hands. The Raiders disappointing season stalls the momentum that was building since Jack Del Rio became the head coach of Carr.

It wasn’t a high quality game like others during the week, but the NFL needed something interesting from their marquee team (like it or not, no one brings ratings like the Cowboys). They got it, even if it’s in a slightly convoluted way.