The Las Vegas Raiders and Dallas Cowboys didn’t exactly give us a showcase of clean football in Week 11. Flags were flying all around. The one that stuck with everyone, though, was Raiders defensive end Malcolm Koonce taking a swipe at Cowboys’ lineman Tyler Guyton’s helmet. And the league didn’t let it slide.

Malcolm Koonce was fined $12,172 for unnecessary roughness after striking Guyton in the head after the play. It wasn’t a closed-fist punch, more of a flat-palmed shot, but it was always going to draw a penalty and a fine in today’s NFL.

Guyton’s reaction didn’t help. Worried the officials might’ve missed it, he sold the contact hard. Head snapping back, arms up, then dropping to the turf as if he’d been blindsided. By the time he added a little extra roll on the ground, the flag was already out.

Koonce drew a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty on the play, but it was eventually rescinded. Fortunately for the Cowboys, it was declined because the Raiders also committed pass interference, and George Pickens punched in a red-zone score soon after.

As for Koonce, it’s been a rough stretch. After a breakout 2023 that set him up for a bigger role heading into the final year of his rookie contract, he lost all of last year to injury. This season was supposed to be the bounce-back, but he’s managed just one sack through 10 games.

And after signing a one-year, $12 million deal in the offseason, it’s hard to see the Raiders rushing to extend him. This latest incident certainly doesn’t help his case. But Koonce wasn’t the only player to feel the league’s disciplinary hand after that game.

The NFL punished two Cowboys players as well

George Pickens is playing the best football of his career, and life in Dallas seems to suit him… maybe a little too well at times. He put on another show against the Raiders, catching nine passes for 144 yards and a score, but he also walked away from that win with some unwelcome news.

Pickens was fined $26,085 for unsportsmanlike conduct after his second-quarter touchdown, when he wrapped his arms around the goalpost in celebration. It wasn’t malicious, but it’s still against league rules, and as a repeat offender, the fine came in heavier than most expected. Higher than Malcolm Koonce’s, who smacked a player in the helmet.

Apart from Pickens, linebacker DeMarvion Overshown was fined $8,166 for unnecessary roughness after a late hit near the end of the second quarter. It’s his first league-issued fine since joining the Cowboys in 2024.

On the bright side, the Cowboys finally put together a solid outing on both sides of the ball. The offense finally found its groove after a few rough outings, and the defense only conceded 16 points, which seems like a miracle this season. For Las Vegas, on the other hand, things just can’t seem to get any better.