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The San Francisco 49ers head to frozen Green Bay to take on the Packers this Saturday night. And they won’t be the only people on the field freezing their backsides, the NFL officiating crew led by referee Ron Torbert.
It’s always difficult to get a true idea of how well an officiating crew does their job, but as fans, the fewer delays due to penalties is always a nice thing. Below, we’ll break down how this crew has stacked up against their peers in penalties called and how each team ranks in penalties called against them.
DraftKings Sportsbook currently has the Packers as 6-point favorites over the 49ers.
Officiating crew: 49ers-Packers Divisional round
| Pos | # | Name | Yrs | 2021 crew | College | Occupation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | # | Name | Yrs | 2021 crew | College | Occupation |
| R | 62 | Ron Torbert | 12 | Michigan State | attorney | |
| U | 92 | Bryan Neale | 8 | Smith | Indiana | sales consultant |
| DJ | 24 | David Oliver | 5 | Hill | Baker | information systems manager |
| LJ | 59 | Rusty Baynes | 12 | Boger | Auburn-Montgomery | general manager, safety services |
| FJ | 25 | Ryan Dickson | 5 | Torbert | Utah | commercial real estate developer |
| SJ | 41 | Boris Cheek | 26 | Allen | Morgan State | retired director of operations and management |
| BJ | 93 | Scott Helverson | 19 | Kemp | Iowa | sales, printing and promotions |
| RO | Roddy Ames | 4 | Hill | Colby College | attorney | |
| RA | Joe Wollan | 2 | Hill | St. Thomas | recruiting | |
| ALT | R | Brad Allen | 8 | Pembroke State | non-profit CEO | |
| ALT | U | Tab Slaughter | 2 | Blakeman | Arkansas State | chief operating officer |
| ALT | DJ | Jerod Phillips | 6 | Martin | Northeastern State | elementary school teacher |
| ALT | FJ | Mike Weatherford | 20 | Novak | Oklahoma State | oil and gas business |
| ALT | BJ | Tony Josselyn | 4 | Torbert | Eastern Kentucky | probation officer |
courtesy footballzebras.com
Penalties called
Torbert’s crew this season called the second-fewest penalties per game of any crew, while the Packers have a record of 6-2 and the 49ers have a record of 3-5 with Torbert at the helm all time. Torbert refereed the 49ers-Jaguars game and the Packers-Washington and Packers-Bears games in 2021 for reference.
If we break it down further, out of 17 total crews, Torberts’s crew ranked:
Holding: 7th
Pass interference: 13th
Roughing the passer: 5th
Unsportsmanlike conduct: 17th
Penalty yards: 9th
Team penalties
On the season, the Packers have accrued the fewest total penalties in the league, with 86, while the 49ers had 127, ranking them 20th. If you look at the penalties on a per play basis, the Packers have had the second-fewest, while the 49ers rank 19th in that category.