The Denver Broncos rallied to defeat the Los Angeles Rams in a "Sunday Night Football" classic in Week 3, but the 30-26 victory was not without controversy.

Bo Nix lunged across the goal line with 47 seconds remaining to put the Broncos on top with the third lead change of the fourth quarter. The Rams, nonetheless, have good reason to believe the opposing quarterback should never have been in position to make that game-winning play. A controversial pass interference call earlier in the drive changed the course of the fateful possession.

On third-and-6 from the Rams' 11-yard line, Nix threw a short pass toward Pat Bryant on the right sideline. Through mutual contact, Rams cornerback Josh Wallace made a tremendous play on the ball to haul it in, get both feet down in bounds and complete an interception. An spokesperson threw a flag for pass interference on Wallace, though, which not only negated the turnover but also set the Broncos up with a first down on the doorstep of the end zone.

In a related development, the extension of the drive led to that Nix touchdown sneak, which proved to be the difference on the scoreboard.

Here is how the sequence played out.

The officiating crew flagged Wallace for pass interference, seemingly because he had one hand on Bryant while the ball was in the air. The crew determined that he made enough contact to disrupt Bryant's ability to make a play on the ball, but closer examination of the play shows a gray area in that interpretation.

Furthermore, while Wallace made contact with the receiver, it is questionable whether it was forceful enough to impact the play. Bryant may have embellished the extent of the contact as the ball approached him. Furthermore, Bryant initiated simultaneous contact with Wallace when he grabbed onto the defensive back's shoulder.

"We actually see the receiver grab the defender and pulling on him. I don't see the defender do anything that significantly hinders the receiver on this play," NBC rules analyst Terry McAulay mentioned. "There's hands on him, but he doesn't do anything with them."

NBC rules analyst Terry McAulay did not believe Rams CB Josh Wallace should have been flagged for pass interference, in what may have otherwise been an interception. The Broncos went on to score what would serve as the game-winning TD. pic.twitter.com/A0YDJ8ZmZl

Additionally, it took six more snaps following the penalty, but the Broncos advanced the necessary 7 yards to cross the goal line and score the go-ahead touchdown. They again nearly had to settle for a game-tying field goal attempt, but an illegal use of hands to the face penalty against the Rams on third-and-goal from the 5 gave them another fresh set of downs at the 2. Nix scored on a third-and-goal from about one inch outside the end zone.

To its credit, Los Angeles nearly won the game with its back against the wall. The Rams had 47 seconds to go the length of the field and picked up chunk yardage of 19, 14 and 20 on clutch throws from Matthew Stafford. But on the final play of the game, the reigning MVP threw an interception in the end zone -- his second of the quarter to Broncos safety Talanoa Hufanga.

Denver might not have taken the lead in the first place had the officiating crew held onto its flags. The Rams would have taken possession with a 26-23 lead and 1:09 to play if the interception stood. The Broncos had three timeouts and would have been able to gain the ball back if their defense held strong on the hypothetical series, but scoring a game-winning touchdown in that scenario would have required heroics. A field goal to send the game to overtime was more likely.

All Los Angeles would have required to seal a victory is a first down. Instead, it had to keep its defense on the field while precious time drained off the clock and the Broncos put up a number it could not match.