Sean Payton takes high road after questionable officiating in win
Nov 26, 2023, 6:00 PM | Updated: Nov 27, 2023, 12:14 pm
You can make a case that the Denver Broncos and head coach Sean Payton beat the Cleveland Browns and the officials on Sunday afternoon.
Denver left Empower Field at Mile High with a 29-12 win, but there were some tense moments. Particularly when safety P.J. Locke got called for a questionable person foul, as well as outside linebacker Baron Browning.
Both were simply hard hits, but maybe too hard for the NFL’s liking. Locke nailed Browns tight end David Njoku on a badly thrown football. It extended a Cleveland drive which eventually resulted in a touchdown and cut the Broncos lead to 14-12.
Then later, with Denver still only up one score, Browning blew up Cleveland QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson on what looked to be a hit with his shoulder. After some time, the refs flew a flag, and rather than having to punt the Browns got a first-down and continued their drive.
Still, after the game, Payton could’ve gone off. He didn’t, instead taking the high road. Winning by 17 points probably helped his mood.
“Look, those guys worked hard, the officiating crew. They’re tasked with a difficult job. Some of those calls are difficult to make. They’ve got a challenge. They happen so quick,” Payton said.
Outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper also got hit with a very questionable face-mask call, and on the day the Broncos were flagged eight times for 71 yards. Three of those were personal fouls.
“We had good dialogue,” Payton said of talking with the referees about each call. “I’ve worked with a bunch of those guys over the years and I felt like there was good communication. It kind of goes back and forth. You get some, sometimes you don’t, but they did a good job of communicating everything.”
Again, it’s nice the Broncos won, or these penalties would be a bigger story. Denver feels like it’s already under the microscope from the league, with safety Kareem Jackson now suspended for a second time.
And we all know Payton has a history with the NFL, infamously getting suspended for an entire year while he was with the Saints.
On Sunday, it turned out to be a non-issue in the grand scheme of things, but it’s still worth keeping an eye on moving forward.
