Get ready to see a whole lot of laundry on the field this Thursday night, because the Panthers-Packers game is shaping up to be an absolute flag-fest. When Week 8 kicks off, we are pitting two of the league’s most penalized teams against each other, all under the watchful eye of a referee crew that loves to throw flags more than anyone else.
Penalty Magnets Collide
Seriously, these teams are penalty machines. The Packers are rolling into this game as the most penalized team in the entire league, averaging a staggering 9.3 flags every single game. And it is not just volume, they are second in the league for penalty yards too, racking up 78.0 yards per game. Not to be outdone, the Panthers are not far behind. They are the fourth most penalized squad at 8.7 flags per game, and get this: they actually *lead the league* in penalty yards, giving up a whopping 79.2 yards per contest. That is almost 80 yards in freebies every week! How does that even happen?
Scott Novak’s Crew Is Bringing The Whistles
And if you thought the teams were bad, wait until you hear about the folks calling the game. Referee Scott Novak’s crew is notorious for keeping their yellow flags busy. They lead the league, by a significant margin, in penalties called per game, hitting an insane 22.7 flags. And when they call ’em, they accept ’em, too, leading the league with 20.1 accepted penalties per game. So, you have got two penalty-prone teams meeting a flag-happy crew. What could possibly go wrong… or right, depending on if you love seeing the game slow down to a crawl?
Throw all these ingredients into the Thursday night stew, and what do you get? A recipe for endless stoppages, that is what. This game could seriously go on forever. If you are tuning in, maybe follow the original advice: take a nap in the afternoon, because this one might just last longer than usual. It is going to be a fascinating, if frustrating, watch to see if these trends continue, or if someone, somehow, finds a way to play clean football for once.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pro Football Talk.
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