Predict the Score – Week 5 at San Diego

[iknowftbll]

Yeah was just about to come and say this. I agree the holding penalties looked decently legit. A few of them looked pretty ticky tack but when going by the letter of the law they should have been called. I didn't have a problem with that as long as they were then going to call those same ticky tack calls on the Chargers. Well I didn't see that happening.

This is true. Broncos opponents draw an astonishingly low number of holding penalties, far below the league average. This wouldn't be anything to get excited about save a couple reasons. Anecdotally we see holding on our pass rushers a lot. It has reached a point of absurdity that it is not called despite how often it happens, often on back to back plays. Sometimes on critical 3rd down plays where the result of the play ends up being a conversion but should be 3rd and distance +10. Statistically and historically teams with a pass rush as ferocious as Denver's have induced holding penalties on their opponents at rates that exceed league averages. Opponents of the 2015 Broncos received holding penalties far below league averages and while I've not broken out the stats for 2016 my eyes tell me it's more of the same this year. I am not a conspiracy theorist. I do not believe the league is rigged. I don't think officiating crews get instructions for how to keep the audience interested by keeping both teams in the game. With that said, it's stuff like this that lends credibility to those who believe those narratives. It's not hard to see why the league wouldn't want the Broncos to either entirely trash an opposing offense or have said opposing offense trash itself with holding penalty after holding penalty. I've seen it called on the Broncos so often but seen it given a pass by Broncos opponents so often I wish they'd just remove it as a penalty.

As for the Chargers trying to hand us the game I guess you maybe should have watched the 2nd half of the game. Broncos had their chances and just kept making stupid mistakes.

2 fumbles on drives where the Broncos were finally moving the football killing all momentum.
Countless holding penalties calling back some of our biggest plays
Missed field goal that would have gotten it to a 1 score game
Safety that made it a 3 score game

Yeah Broncos got a couple of breaks like a couple of fumbles but remember one of those fumbles the Broncos ran it in for a touchdown but because the officials messed up the call it was called to the point where it hit the punt returner. That cost us 4 points. So even when the Broncos caught a break it seemed to still go against them somehow. All the things that could have gone wrong in that game just seemed to happen. It was not our night.

This is very much why I'm not giving up on this team. The Broncos are 4-2 and people are running for the hills right now. Watch: if the Broncos dominate the Texans on MNF they'll suddenly be favorites again and everyone will be back on the band wagon. Fans and media are extremely finicky.

The team very much was its own undoing against the Chargers and in both contests with the Chargers and Falcons the defensive production was good enough that an average performance by the offense would have likely resulted in a win. Against the Chargers the penalties really destroyed any momentum. It wouldn't be as frustrating as it is if the refs would notice the Chargers held often as well, but I think that's just the way they're going to call Broncos games. And the refs not calling the holding calls on the opponents does not wipe out this reality: The penalties called on the Broncos were pretty legit. That means we have a lot of work to do in this area.

As for the muffed punt, I agree that the refs need to let the play develop before they blow the whistle. I think they are trying to avoid a scrum and conscious of player safety but that's mistake that cost the team a TD and is not forgivable. They really need to let the play develop, make the ruling on the field then allow the challenge or the mandatory review to inform the right decision. Especially inside the 5 where that play took place you'd think some game time situational awareness on the part of the ref would be prudent. The potential for a big play in that scenario is huge and it's worth waiting to see what happens before blowing the play dead.

 

[CEH]

Yeah was just about to come and say this. I agree the holding penalties looked decently legit. A few of them looked pretty ticky tack but when going by the letter of the law they should have been called. I didn't have a problem with that as long as they were then going to call those same ticky tack calls on the Chargers. Well I didn't see that happening.

As for the Chargers trying to hand us the game I guess you maybe should have watched the 2nd half of the game. Broncos had their chances and just kept making stupid mistakes.

2 fumbles on drives where the Broncos were finally moving the football killing all momentum.
Countless holding penalties calling back some of our biggest plays
Missed field goal that would have gotten it to a 1 score game
Safety that made it a 3 score game

Yeah Broncos got a couple of breaks like a couple of fumbles but remember one of those fumbles the Broncos ran it in for a touchdown but because the officials messed up the call it was called to the point where it hit the punt returner. That cost us 4 points. So even when the Broncos caught a break it seemed to still go against them somehow. All the things that could have gone wrong in that game just seemed to happen. It was not our night.

I think hitting the returner is consider a muffed punt since he may no attempt to secure the ball and cannot be advance. Happened to Denver in NE couple years ago in OT. The infamous "Peter Peter" play.

Still first and 10 at the 11 . The first play after Paradis is blown up into Jano who then forces CJ out of his running lane was is epitome of the entire Oline play that night.