The Denver Broncos had a tough time with the refs in their 33-32 win over the New York Giants, and it was especially costly for linebacker Dre Greenlaw. He’ll miss this week’s game against the Dallas Cowboys due to his one-game suspension for threatening referee Brad Allen after the winning PAT, but there was also some collateral damage in this one. 

Specifically, fellow linebacker Justin Strnad is likely to have his wallet lightened some when the NFL fines him, according to an article written by Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Florio noted that the video showed Strnad making contact with Allen, which makes the whole incident especially confusing. The NFL obviously took Greenlaw's threats to Allen seriously, as well they should, but it doesn't make a whole lot of sense that Strnad gets off with a lighter punishment after making contact. 

In the past,  making contact with an official has been the line that can't be crossed, and Florio added that it almost always leads to an automatic ejection. He went back in the time machine to cite an example, citing the actions of Hall of Fame running back Walter Payton when he got ejected for grabbing an official’s arm in 1980. 

The NFL has rarely been consistent about these kinds of things, regardless of how much they protest to the contrary. V.P. of football operations Troy Vincent will appear later today on “PFT Live,” and he’ll undoubtedly offer up some kind of word salad “explanation” for these decisions. 

NFL inconsistencies aside, Broncos coach Sean Payton bears some of the blame for this. He ran out onto the field after a pivotal defensive pass interference call in the last minute that nearly allowed the Giants to pull the game out, earning an unsportsmanlike conduct of his own after the play. From there, the players basically played “follow the leader” in going after the refs. 

This is also a broader problem for Denver that Payton needs to address. The Broncos lead the league in penalties by a lot, and while some of this is a byproduct of the feistiness of their defense, it’s up to Payton to get it dialed back. 

Denver is playing in a lot of close games right now, and that’s likely to continue going forward given how inconsistent their offense has been. Sooner or later the penalties are going to cost the Broncos big time, and they’re living on borrowed time if they think they can continue to get away with the kind of bad behavior they displayed as a team against the Giants.