NFL's rumored solution to Lions-Cowboys debacle is infuriating

The Detroit Lions were screwed out of a potential victory over the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday night. By now you know the story -- Taylor Decker tried to report as eligible to the officiating crew, but the Lions confused the refs by sending multiple players over at once. Dan Campbell claimed he told the officials pregame about the trick two-point play Detroit ran near the end of regulation. Decker doubled down, saying he tried to tell the officials, but to no avail.

The Lions will not secure the No. 1 seed as a result, which could very well cost them a home playoff game in the divisional round or NFC Championship. Campbell wasn't thrilled postgame, though the Lions coach and his players did everything possible to avoid a fine.

Said officials could face some level of discipline from the NFL, as reported by Adam Schefter on Sunday:

"A large part of Brad Allen's crew is not going to be officiating in the postseason," Schefter said. "They're going to get downgraded, and the chances are that many of them are not going to be involved in the postseason."

NFL still falls short in wake of Cowboys-Lions ending

While it's a nice surprise to see Allen's crew not involved in major postseason contests, isn't there more the NFL can do to avoid such clerical errors in the future? Evidently not. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk made that clear on Monday morning.

"Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the NFL does not plan to change the procedure for players reporting as eligible. The league views the situation as an effort by the Lions to engage in deception and gamesmanship that backfired," Florio wrote.

I'll be the latest of many to suggest that's a cop out. To simply punish the officials involved is to avoid addressing the problem directly, and leave the rule open to interpretation in the future. The Lions were not trying to fool the officials, but rather trick the Cowboys. This is especially evident since Campbell tried to give Allen's crew a heads up pregame.

The NFL has an officiating problem on its hands. The sooner they realize that, the better.