Sunday’s outcome would have been completely different for the Carolina Panthers had there not been the controversial interception call from the referees.
In the third quarter of Sunday’s matchup vs. the Broncos, QB Bryce Young targeted tight end Tommy Tremble in the end zone. The ball popped up off a tip and was snatched by Broncos safety Devon Key before touching the ground. Officials on the field missed the catch and ruled it an incomplete pass.
Carolina immediately rushed to the line to run their next play (2nd-and-Goal). Chuba Hubbard took the handoff and fully executed the run play. After Hubbard’s run was already blown dead, officials retroactively halted the game. They stated that Broncos head coach Sean Payton threw his challenge flag before Carolina snapped the ball for second down, meaning the play Carolina just ran was completely wiped out.
Bryce Young Speaks Up on Panthers’ Controversial INT
Upon reviewing the video replay of the 1st-and-Goal pass, officials overturned the incompletion and awarded Denver an interception in the end zone.
“It’s a first for me in football at any level. But again, we should never be relying on refs,” Young said post-game, per Fox Sports.
“It’s on us to go leave no doubt. It’s on us to go out and win. There’s plenty of stuff on tape that we could have executed better, that I could have executed better. That’s all that we care about,” Young added.
Under NFL rules, once a team snaps the ball for the next play, the previous play is officially dead and can no longer be challenged. Because broadcast cameras showed the Panthers executing a full play before the stoppage, fans and beat writers believed Payton’s flag came in way too late.
Officials maintained that Payton dropped the flag right as Carolina was coming to the line, and the head referee simply acknowledged the challenge before the snap occurred, even if the whistle blew late.
It hurt the Panthers big time. They were leading the Broncos 14-13 from the 1-yard line. But the call handed Denver the possession, which resulted in an 80-yard TD drive, and ultimately a 26-11 win.
HC Dave Canales Didn’t Have Much To Say Either
Even Canales couldn’t do much, as he said he had to go with what the refs say after the game.
“I gotta go from their word,” Canales said, per Joe Person. “You know, I don’t have that at my disposal, but they did confirm that he got the flag off.”
The Broncos head coach Sean Payton, too, broke down the play from his point of view afterwards.
“So it comes kind of late, and I just gave [director of game management/assistant quarterbacks] Evan [Rothstein] a game ball,” Payton told reporters. “That was a hard one for any one of us to see, and my concern was: Was anyone able to see that I threw it before the play was snapped? And fortunately, New York can.”
While the controversial reversal completely shifted momentum, the Panthers showed genuine fight down the stretch. If Young continues to take command of the offense while keeping this level of accountability, the Panthers will quickly turn these heartbreaking finishes into decisive victories.
Panthers’ Bryce Young Breaks Silence on Controversial INT vs. Broncos