On Thursday night, the planets will align in a very specific way. And that could lead to more than a few penalties being called.
When the Panthers and Packers open Week 8, the game will pit the most-penalized team (the Packers, 9.3 per game) against the fourth most-penalized team (the Panthers, (8.7 per game). The Panthers also lead the league in penalty yards per game (79.2), while the Packers are second at 78.0 yards per game.
On top of that, referee Scott Novak’s crew leads the league in penalties called per game (22.7) and penalties accepted per game (20.1).
Throw the ingredients together, and there could be a stew of stoppages on Thursday night.
Either way, it’s something to monitor. Will the Packers and Panthers continue to draw an excess of penalty flags? Will Novak and crew continue to be flag-happy?
It could be a good idea to take a nap tomorrow afternoon. Thursday night’s game could last a little longer than usual.