Broncos wide receiver Pat Bryant had a big game on Sunday night in Denver, and he was also involved in one of the most controversial sequences of the NFL season so far.
Just over a minute remaining, a few plays before quarterback Bo Nix dove in for the go-ahead score that won the game against the visiting Los Angeles Rams, it looked like he threw a game-losing interception. But Rams cornerback Josh Wallace was called for defensive pass interference while covering Bryant. The Broncos went on to win 30-26 at Empower Field at Mile High.
A day later, Bryant appeared on “Xfinity Monday Live” and host Romi Bean asked him, “Was it pass interference?”
“It was a little pass interference. I did sell it just enough, you know what I’m saying, to get the flag,” Bryant said.
Pat Bryant was the guest on the CBS Colorado Sports show “Xfinity Monday Live” at Viewhouse Centennial.
CBS
“He did give me a little nudge to get the flag, but I felt like I couldn’t get the ball, so it was either the ball or the call. And we ended up getting the call,” he said.
Replays showed some pushing and grabbing between Bryant and Wallace as they ran toward the sideline on third-and-6 from the Rams 11 with 1:15 remaining and the Broncos trailing 26-23. Bryant appeared to be thrown off balance by Wallace’s quick shove into his back and grab at his waist as they moved toward the sideline.
Josh Wallace of the Los Angeles Rams is called for pass interference on a pass intended for Pat Bryant of the Denver Broncos during the fourth quarter at Empower Field at Mile High on Sept. 27, 2026.
Justin Edmonds/Getty Images
Bryant embellished the contact, throwing his head back as the two tumbled toward the sideline and Wallace somehow cradled Nix’s pass as they fell out of bounds.
It would have been Wallace’s second interception of the game, but he was whistled for DPI.
As the officials spotted the ball at the 7 with a first down, the NBC broadcast team of Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth brought in rules analyst Terry McAulay.
“As we get toward the end, we actually see the receiver grab the defender and pull him into him,” McAulay said. “I don’t see the defender do anything that significantly hinders the receiver on this play.”
Pass interference calls aren’t reviewable, so the Broncos and Bryant maybe got away with one. Or maybe the officials got it right. McAulay never addressed Wallace’s shove to Bryant’s back that knocked him off balance, allowing him to pick off the pass.
Bryant says that once a defensive back gives him a push, he operates under the knowledge that it’s either illegal contact or pass interference.
While watching the video with Bryant, Bean said, “I saw a little shove in the back there.”
“Oh yeah, he definitely gave me a shove,” Bryant said.
Bryant said he’s not unlike other receivers in the NFL who try to get a referee’s attention in the moment when he thinks there’s been a penalty committed against him.
“I kind of use it to my advantage,” he said.
When Sean Payton was asked on Monday about his receiver’s flop and how prevalent such displays of acting are in the league, the Broncos coach said, with a chuckle, “We’re not at that soccer level yet, because we saw that for a summer,” referring to the FIFA World Cup 2026.
“I think it’s probably south of where the NBA is. I think there’s nothing that anyone works on. If they’re trying to catch a pass or … it’s not something that’s practiced. I don’t know other than [Bryant’s] natural reaction, outside of that, there’s really nothing we look at.”
Since the game, Bryant says he is hearing from a lot of people about the play.
“I know that’s the biggest thing going across social media right now. I can’t even open my social media without seeing the video,” he said.
With NFL fans and analysts suggesting the Rams were robbed, Rams coach Sean McVay declined to join the fray.
“I’m not going to play the victim card,” he said Monday. “It doesn’t really matter. It is what it is. That was the call that was made.”