NFL Legend Leads Calls Against Refs for Punishing Eagles’ Reed Blankenship During Cowboys Game

It’s in these fractions of a second that legends are either born or buried, and on a pivotal Sunday night in Philadelphia, it seemed for all the world that Reed Blankenship was about to be the former. Then, the flag flew. The play was a microcosm of the entire Eagles-Cowboys feud: chaotic, violent, and breathtakingly consequential. With the score 24-20 and Dallas threatening in the end zone, a pass sailed toward Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson.

As he knelt, stumbling, Eagles safety Blankenship launched himself forward, a missile of desperation and technique. The collision was fierce, the ball fell as safety Andrew Mukuba forgot to catch it, and the stadium erupted… until they saw the official’s signal. Unnecessary roughness. A penalty that felt, to many, like a theft.

From the broadcast booth to social media, the outcry was immediate and fierce, led by a voice that carries immense weight in any defensive debate: NFL legend and ESPN analyst Richard Sherman. Never one to mince words, Sherman took to X and laid it out plainly. “Don’t agree with that call on Blankenship, but Ball doesn’t lie,” he tweeted, cutting to the heart of the matter. “Not sure what he’s expected to do here. Just not realistic.”

Don’t agree with that call on Blankenship but Ball doesn’t lie. Not sure what he’s expected to do here. Just not realistic.

But big play by the Eagles Defense on the following play. pic.twitter.com/PMpWMImZQF

— Richard Sherman (@RSherman_25) September 5, 2025

In that single phrase, Sherman captured the universal frustration of every defensive player facing the league’s ever-tightening enforcement. What is a fundamentally sound, game-saving play if not this? Sherman, however, being the ultimate competitor, couldn’t leave it at just the critique, adding with a nod to Philly’s resilience, “But big play by the Eagles Defense on the following play.”

That ethos—’ball don’t lie‘—isn’t just a catchy phrase; it’s a basketball-turned-gridiron gospel that suggests the universe has a way of correcting artificial injustice. Analyst Tazim Wajid echoed the sentiment, tweeting, “FYI… BALL DON’ LIE: That was a horrible call against Blankenship… That was not a blow to the head. He hit the ball and Ferguson’s left shoulder.” The call was so egregious to the naked eye that it demanded cosmic correction, a restoration of order that the Eagles’ defense promptly delivered.

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