The Broncos have won four straight and are now firmly in the hunt in the AFC playoff picture. The latest victory came on Sunday night as the team rallied to defeat the Vikings thanks to a late touchdown throw by Russell Wilson, but the winning effort didn’t come without a little controversy. On the first drive of the game, Minnesota quarterback Joshua Dobbs fumbled the football, and it was eventually recovered by the Denver defense.
After the loss, Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell told reporters that he believes Broncos safety Kareem Jackson should have been penalized for the hit that sparked the turnover. Jackson — who made his return on Sunday from a two-game suspension for similar hits — did seem to lower his head and lead with the crown of his helmet into Dobb’s chest. The NFL is now reviewing the hit for potential disciple, according to NFL Media. If the league finds that Jackson’s hit was over the line, it would trigger another suspension.
“On the field, it felt like that,” O’Connell said when asked if Jackson should’ve been flagged, via ESPN. “I’ll have to go back and look at it. It tends to happen pretty fast out there, but in the moment, coming from the second level the way he did, it seemed like a pretty direct helmet-to-helmet type hit. But I’m sure [officials] saw it differently on the play. They’re officiating a fast play right there.”
Dobbs was checked out by trainers in the blue medical tent following the hit and was able to pass the evaluation to stay in the game. Postgame, the quarterback said he “felt fine” and simply stated that he needs to take better care of the football going forward. After the turnovers, the Broncos tacked on three points thanks to a 31-yard field goal from Will Lutz.
As for Jackson, he has garnered a reputation for questionable hits. The safety has been fined four times this season and has been ejected twice on top of this latest suspension. With that in mind, any sort of borderline hit is going to be questioned and thrust under the microscope.