Jerry Jones was clearly excited to participate in Halloween festivities this year.
The Cowboys’ owner decided to dress up as a blind NFL official as his way of enjoying the spooky holiday. However, as the owner of one of the most highly scrutinized teams in the league, Jones’s decision to depict a referee may not have been the best idea.
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Jones depicting himself as “blind” with the sunglasses and white cane could have been a not-so-subtle shot at the officiating.
“I’m being very careful here because I’m getting real close to a fine. It shows how much I love them to dress up as them ... how much I respect their decision-making,” Jones said about his attire on Sunday. “I had the cane and everything. And I used it on some people, too.”
But Jones, who attempted to toe the line between fun and criticism, could potentially be fined by the NFL for his costume.
In 2019, the league sent a memo to teams about specific types of criticism toward officials that the NFL prohibits.
The NFL’s protocol forbids “comments regarding the quality of officiating, individual calls or missed calls, the league’s officiating department, an officiating crew or an individual game official accusing game officials of acting with bias or in any way questioning the integrity of NFL game officials; or posting negative or derogatory/demeaning content pertaining to officiating on social media.”
Jones’s costume could fall within the parameters of "derogatory or demeaning content.” So, what Jones likely felt was a light-hearted jab in the Halloween spirit could garner punishment from the league.
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