Rookie phenom Ezekiel Elliott rushed for two touchdowns -- including a 55-yarder -- and averaged 6.7 yards per carry as the Cowboys dismantled the Lions on "Monday Night Football," but it was a late third-quarter run that went for no gain that has become a story.

The Lions got called for tackling too hard: https://t.co/HeleCSFyz1pic.twitter.com/E9bBdRjuKq — SB Nation (@SBNation) December 27, 2016

Lions rookie defensive tackle A'Shawn Robinson was flagged on the play for unsportsmanlike conduct, and afterwards, Elliott was asked about the tackle.

"He was being dirty all game long," the running back told reporters, via the Dallas Morning News. "I think he's just a little bit salty from that Sugar Bowl win we got against them in New Orleans two years ago. It's whatever. Let him do what he wants to do."

The back story: Robinson, who played at Alabama was part of a Crimson Tide defense that allowed Elliott, then at Ohio State, to run for 230 yards in a 42-35 Buckeyes Sugar Bowl win following the 2014 college season.

Robinson, for his part, wasn't all that impressed with a Cowboys team that is now 13-2.

"They're alright," he said. "They did some alright stuff that worked. Nothing special. They ain't nothing special."

For what it's worth, Lions coach Jim Caldwell wasn't crazy about the officials' decision to penalize Robinson for what was effectively a hard tackle.

"I don't get into talking about officials and what they called and what they didn't call," Caldwell said, via the Mlive.com. "I yell at them and tell them what I felt on the field and when it's over, it's over. The call they made, they made. They're not going to go back and change it."

And Caldwell plans to send the tape to the league for review.

"We have a way in which we can voice our opinion without necessarily talking to the media about it, because it doesn't really function that way in terms of our system," he said. "We'll use the protocol and the proper vehicle to do just that."