FRISCO, Texas – Perhaps it was overshadowed in the wake of a crazy game, but it was not a forgotten talking point.
Late in Sunday's game against Seattle, Trysten Hill drew the ire of the football world when he appeared to roll up on Seahawks running back Chris Carson during a tackle.
Carson exited the game and was later revealed to have a first-degree knee sprain. Several prominent voices had issue with the way Hill made the tackle – none larger than Seahawks coach Pete Carroll.
"I was really pissed about that," Carroll said Monday morning on ESPN 710 radio in Seattle.
Seahawks linebacker K.J. Wright also voiced his disapproval of the tackle on Twitter, calling for harsh punishment from the NFL.
Monday evening, Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy and defensive coordinator Mike Nolan were both given their chance to comment on the play. Both coaches voiced strong support for Hill, saying they didn't think there was any malicious intent.
"You see fundamentals – particularly early in the season, particularly this season – that we need to continue to work through and do a better job of," McCarthy said. "I think he was just trying to wrap and roll, and the result of it occurred in an injury. By no means do we want to see players get hurt, especially when it's unnecessary. But trust me, there was zero intent involved there."
Much has been said about the "gator roll" style of tackle that happened on the play. Hill rolled with his momentum from the tackle and it carried him on top of Carson's legs – a technique that several analysts have alleged is meant to injure.
To hear it from Nolan, though, that style of tackle can also be used to avoid bringing a player's full body weight down on top of an opponent.
"Like when you tackle a quarterback, a gator roll – so to speak, as people call it – is something that you might do just to protect so you don't just kind of flop on the quarterback," he said.
Like McCarthy, Nolan also had strong words in regard to Hill's character.
"I know the player, and that's first and foremost in my mind, and Trysten Hill is not a dirty player by any stretch of the imagination," Nolan said. "He's an excellent young man, and I don't think he had any intention to hurt that player."
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