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Cowboys ride to Kevin Smith's aid

By Bart Hubbuch

Dallas Morning News

(KRT)

IRVING, Texas - Convinced more than ever that NFL officials aren't playing fair with Kevin Smith, the Cowboys rushed to their beleaguered cornerback's defense Monday.

Owner Jerry Jones, a member of the league's competition committee, asked NFL officiating director Jerry Seeman for a review of the second of two crucial interference penalties on Smith that led to Sunday's 20-17 loss to the New York Giants.

The lobbying on Smith's behalf didn't stop there. As coach Barry Switzer was blasting the second call at length, Cowboys secondary coach Mike Zimmer forwarded film of the play to the league office along with a hand-written letter of protest.

The Cowboys realize the complaints won't change Sunday's outcome. The intent, instead, is to make sure Smith receives the leeway from officials that he isn't getting from quarterbacks leery of throwing on his Pro Bowl counterpart, Deion Sanders.

"They've got to let the guy earn his living," Zimmer said of the officials. "Just because a receiver complains doesn't mean you make the call."

What raised the Cowboys' ire was the 26-yard penalty against Smith for allegedly interfering with Giants receiver Chris Calloway with less than six minutes left in the game. The back judge said Smith cut off Calloway, but the Cowboys insisted that game film shows Calloway grabbing the back of Smith's shoulder pads as the two chase a Danny Kanell pass.

The call stood against Smith, who was penalized additionally for removing his helmet. The 30-yard combination of flags gave the Giants the ball at the Dallas three, and they scored on the next play to take a 20-9 lead.

"They just threw the ball up," Zimmer said. "They had no chance of completing either one of those passes, yet we get penalized because the receiver runs a bad route and the quarterback throws a bad ball. They're so bad that we cover them too good."

Said Switzer: "It was offensive pass interference. Sometimes the officials forget who holds who."

Smith also endured a 33-yard penalty for interfering with Calloway in the third quarter, leading to a Giants field goal, but the Cowboys weren't as vocal about that call.

Still, a furious Smith, who has received four interference penalties in five games this season, erupted afterward, saying: "I've played long enough in this league not to get that. I deserve more respect than that. I've seen guys rape other guys out there, and I'm not even touching him."

The 5-11 Smith is an aggressive, physical cornerback, which is what the Cowboys preach and say they still want - no matter what happened Sunday.

"We have to play in that manner to do what we do best," Zimmer said. "We want to be aggressive within the rules."

Jones, who said judgment calls like the one in the fourth quarter against Smith now are discouraged by the competition committee, agreed with Zimmer.

"We coach Kevin to play that way, and we don't want that to change," Jones said.

Smith was prone to interference penalties last year, so much so that Zimmer brought in an NFL back judge to observe him in training camp. The referee cleared Smith, and the sixth-year pro from Texas A&M remained mostly penalty-free in the pre-season.

But the roof caved in Sunday, and Zimmer can't understand why.

"Some of the receivers we're facing are so inept that they can't get open without shoving us or doing things like that," he said. "Then we retaliate and get called for it. It doesn't make any sense."

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