KC Chiefs: Denver Broncos Call Chiefs A Dirty Team
By Alec Tilson
The KC Chiefs dismantled the Broncos yesterday, but Denver players didn’t go quietly.
The Kansas City Chiefs won 29-13 in a blowout at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The game was never close, but afterward the Broncos players didn’t own it. No, they made excuses.
An 80-yard touchdown pass to Charcandrick West summed it all up. By the end of the run, as teammates escorted West into the endzone, Broncos safety T.J. Ward went to the ground with Jeremy Maclin and threw a punch at the receiver. The refs threw Ward out.
The Chiefs took a 29-0 lead, and Ward took a shower. But Ward didn’t own it. No, he made excuses.
According to Cameron Wolfe of the The Denver Post, Ward had this to say about Maclin and the punch that led to his ejection:
"That last play he came over and tried to cheap shot me again and I got emotional. I didn’t really mean to punch him."
And:
Ward: "They’re a pretty dirty team: OL, WRs, TEs. They were doing it last game & continuing to do it this game & it took an effect on me."
— Cameron Wolfe (@CameronWolfe) November 16, 2015
It wasn’t just Ward either. Defensive end Malik Jackson felt the same way about the Chiefs team that outplayed the Broncos in every facet of the game.
Malik Jackson on the Chiefs: They were dirty… If we see them again, there’s no watch it.
— Cameron Wolfe (@CameronWolfe) November 16, 2015
Let’s not forget…Ward was fined $17,363 just last week for a hit on Colts receiver T.Y. Hilton. (ProFootballTalk)
And Malik Jackson? This is where it gets good.
Jackson was fined for a suspiciously late hit on Jamaal Charles in Week 2. He was fined for a horse-collar tackle in Week 5, the same game during which he was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for throwing the ball at the head of an Oakland Raiders receiver.
He was fined last season for headbutting (with his helmet on) a Buffalo Bills players (with his helmet off.) (The Denver Post) And he was fined before that in Week 8 of 2013 for a late hit on Pierre Garcon.
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Now recurring penalties and fines don’t mean a player is dirty, but…yeah. On paper, the Broncos appear to be the ‘dirty’ team of the two, if there was one.
Seven defensive players on the Broncos have combined for ten fines this season, according to Spotrac.com. Six of those fines were for actions during a game, including: late hit, roughing the passer (twice), horse collar and hit on a defenseless receiver.
The Chiefs defense has been fined twice this season. One was Sean Smith‘s fine per his DUI arrest. The second was Steven Nelson‘s roughing the passer in Week 6. And that ‘dirty’ Chiefs offense has been fined once this season – for a Charcandrick West chop block.
This isn’t to say the Broncos are dirty; this is to point out that Ward and Jackson (and perhaps some other Broncos) need to take their lumps. Don’t throw punches when you’re down 22 points late in the game. Don’t poke the eye of the opposing tight end. Don’t pile on a defenseless running back late.
Don’t do all of that then call another team dirty. And especially not a team you lost to for 60 long minutes.
Next: Where Has Knile Davis Been?
I have a feeling the Chiefs are going to do what the Broncos should have done: take the high road. Take their victory, take their time and energy and focus and move on. There’s Wild Cards to be had.