Dealing With Flozell

Tom Coughlin was less worried about what the league would do to Flozell Adams for his behind-the-back cheap shotting of Justin Tuck that triggered a sideline melee as the first half ran out than the fact that the ensuing personal foul call was immediately declined, not by the Giants, but by the officials.

The assumption was that the Cowboys would be penalized 15 yards on the second-half kickoff. But that wasn't the case. So the beefy tackle basically got away with yet another in a growing list of miscreant acts against unknowing defenders.

It's something Coughlin said the competition committee needs to take a look at after the season. For the time being, he placed a call to head of officials Mike Perreira's office and was told the staff was already reviewing the incident and deciding what action, if any, should be taken against Adams. But for the call and lack of on-field punishment itself, he had no answer.

"We were given no option, and to say it was declined gives the wrong impression," Coughlin said. "That's something Mike is reviewing. There's no place in our game for the act that he took. To have that happen and not to have some kind of immediate officiating response, there's something that needs to be addressed there.

"Not that the officials were wrong. It's the way the rule is."

As for a suspension, the NFL will notify the Cowboys by the end of business tomorrow if they've suspended Adams. He was previously fined $12,500 for the Week 2 trip on Justin Tuck and an attempted trip of Osi Umenyiora, and $5,000 in the opener for unnecessary roughness.

EP