ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- One day and countless rewinds later, Broncos cornerback Renaldo Hill said he still believes he shouldn't have been flagged for pass interference on the decisive play that led to the New York Jets' improbable victory in Denver.
If anything, Hill said Santonio Holmes tugged at him and should have been whistled for offensive pass interference, giving the Broncos possession so they could salt away the win.
"I thought I looked back for the ball, I felt a little tug, and that's what kind of got me off balance," Hill said Monday, one day after declining in the post-game locker room to discuss the game-turning call. "I don't know that I would do anything differently in that situation."
Hill got tangled up with Holmes on Mark Sanchez's Hail Mary pass on fourth-and-6 from midfield with under 2 minutes left. Field judge Gary Cavaletto called pass interference on Hill, who had swiped Holmes' face mask with a couple of fingers on his right hand while both fell to the turf.
Holmes insisted after the game that he would have made the catch had his head not been turned by Hill's right hand.
Hill said Monday it was accidental because he was just trying to instinctively maintain his balance.
"We were both falling at that point," Hill said. "And I was in front of him. So, I don't really know what other way I could have done it."
Hill acknowledged that at first he believed Holmes would be whistled for offensive pass interference -- there already had been four such flags in the game.
"It's one of those things that stings," Hill said, "but I can't let it linger for too long."
Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press
