Pittsburgh Steelers safety Ryan Clark has defended Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant after he was criticised for a couple of sideline confrontations with teammates.

Bryant was seen remonstrating with quarterback Tony Romo and tight end Jason Witten during the Cowboys' dramatic 31-30 defeat to the Detroit Lions on Sunday, having to be separated from Witten by DeMarcus Ware.

However, the 24-year-old insisted that his actions were fuelled by "good passion", and Clark believes that the criticism he has received shows the double standards of the NFL.

"I've seen Tom Brady cuss and scream and do all kind of things but nobody looks at him like that. I just think it's unfair the way we see it and the way the media portrays certain things because of personal feelings about a person," Clark told reporters.

"Dez Bryant wasn't going off. Dez Bryant said, 'We are the best in the NFL at this.' Doesn't sound like going off to me. Were his hands flailing, did he use some vulgarity? Yes. But his speech was, 'We are the best in the NFL at this. They can't stop us doing this.' What's wrong with that?"

The Steelers are currently bottom of the AFC North with a 2-5 record and will face the New England Patriots on Sunday.