Broncos' K Brandon McManus Rips NFL After 'Improper Timeline' Forced him to Miss Week 15

Last Monday, Denver Broncos kicker Brandon McManus announced on Twitter that he was going on the Reserve/COVID-19 list due to 'close contact' exposure to an infected person away from the building. Under the NFL's new 'intensive' COVID-19 protocols, a 'close contact' player, who has not tested positive for the virus but has been exposed, the player in question has to go five days testing negative before being allowed to re-enter the facility or play.

McManus was confident that he'd be cleared in time to play in Saturday's game vs. the Buffalo Bills, but that was under the assumption that the five-day counting window started on Monday. The NFL didn't see it that way, starting the five days on Tuesday instead, which forced him to miss the game.

McManus blasted the league's interpretation and enforcement of his situation on Twitter on Friday.

143 Days of Testing since July 26th
Negative (➖)

5 Day NFL & NFLPA Quarantine PCR Testing

Monday 12/14 ➖
Tuesday 12/15 ➖
Wednesday 12/16 ➖
Thursday 12/17 ➖
Friday 12/18 ➖

Friday Mesa POC (which most likely is my result for Saturday Gameday PCR)➖

Why Am I Not Playing?
— Brandon McManus (@thekidmcmanus) December 19, 2020

As the Broncos' player rep for the NFL Players Association (NFLPA), McManus is much more vocal than most kickers. And he's no stranger to engaging in conflict with the league, though usually, that comes behind closed doors as he advocates for his fellow players.

McManus went on to say on Friday, "[An] improper timeline was used in my case."

Fans, understandably, view the NFL's handling of McManus this past week as just another example of the Broncos being treated unfairly by the league front office. The Broncos were treated with extreme harshness in Week 12 after the NFL forced the team to play without a quarterback instead of rescheduling the game vs. New Orleans after Jeff Driskel tested positive for COVID-19 and it was later discovered that Drew Lock, Brett Rypien, and Blake Bortles were potentially exposed due to imperfect mask-wearing.

The NFL had every opportunity to do what it had done with every other team this season who'd encountered a similar pickle thanks to the virus and reschedule. It forced the Broncos to all but forfeit their Week 12 game.

The McManus situation cost the Broncos in a big, bad way, too, as the emergency kicker brought in — Taylor Russolino — missed two extra points and a field goal as the Bills ran roughshod over Denver 48-19. Russolino also erred by sending a kickoff short of the goal-line, despite the thin air of Mile High, allowing explosive Bills returner Andre Roberts to take it 53 yards to open the third quarter.

Russolino's missed field goal led to a 10-point swing as the Broncos were not only robbed of three potential points but the Bills also capitalized the short field and drove down to score a touchdown on the ensuing possession. The five missing points from Denver's box score might seem like a drop in the bucket considering the 29-point margin of victory for Buffalo, but in the NFL, small setbacks can serve as turning points in a game.

There's no way to know how making that field goal, for example, would have shaped the complexion of how that game ultimately unfolded. Don't blame the somewhat windy environment at Empower Field at Mile High for Russolino's foibles because Vic Fangio certainly isn't.

“Obviously, there was some wind out there, but it didn’t bother their kicker," Fangio said post-game. "I thought he was going to kick better than he did.”

McManus' gripe with the NFL is understandable. As is that of Broncos Country.

In more ways than one, the Broncos drew the short straw in 2020. If losing 1,600 offseason reps with a new offensive coordinator and a first-year starter at QB wasn't bad enough, the epidemic of injuries the Broncos suffered as a result of the lack of conditioning sure was.

The NFL only served to kick this once-proud team while it was down, leaving the fan base punch-drunk and battered. Now sitting at 5-9, the Broncos have been bounced from playoff contention and assured of a fourth-straight losing season.

The Broncos have fought a three-front war this year, battling COVID-19, the injury bug, and the NFL. Is it any wonder this team is 5-9?

Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.