Sean Payton woke up Monday and soon learned he would be without a starting linebacker for a game.

The Broncos coach said Wednesday he didn’t hear about Dre Greenlaw’s actions after Sunday’s 33-32 win over the New York Giants until the next morning. Later in the day, Greenlaw was handed a one-game suspension by the NFL for going after referee Brad Allen and his appeal was denied Tuesday.

“We were clearly in his corner with the appeal, (and) what normally has been a fine ended up being different. … We can’t control that,’’ Payton said after a practice at Broncos Park.

So Greenlaw, who returned against the Giants after missing the first six games of the season with a quad injury, won’t play Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys at Empower Field. He will be docked a game check of $192,778.

Greenlaw was suspended for what the league called unsportsmanlike conduct for chasing after Allen and verbally threatening him. The incident was captured on video.

Greenlaw apparently was still upset about cornerback Riley Moss being called for a controversial 38-yard pass interference call with 40 seconds left in the game, giving the Giants first-and-goal at the 2 when they trailed 30-26. Payton ran onto the field in protest and got an unsportsmanlike penalty, which moved the ball to the 1.

Quarterback Jaxson Dart ran the ball in to put the Giants up 32-30 with 37 seconds left. But kicker Jude McAtamney, who was waived Tuesday, missed his second extra point of the day and Wil Lutz won the game for the Broncos on a 39-yard field goal on the final play. That completed a comeback in which they trailed 19-0 and 26-8 earlier in the fourth quarter.

“Obviously, we all love Dre here,’’ Denver defensive lineman Zach Allen said of his suspension. “We know Dre. He’s not trying to disrespect anybody or anything like that. He’s a first-class person, a first-class teammate. … We’re all supporting Dre obviously.”

Cornerback Pat Surtain II also expressed support for Greenlaw.

“We know Dre is a great person overall,’’ Surtain said. “He doesn’t mean any harm. So we supported him along with the process. It sucks to not see him here because he has such an infectious personality around the building. But we uplifted him, keeping him in high spirits.”

The Broncos (5-2) will face the potent Cowboys (3-3-1), who rank No. 1 in the NFL in total offense and No. 2 in points scored. But while they won’t have Greenlaw, that might not end up being a big blow.

Coming off his injury, Greenlaw started against the Giants and was on a pitch count. He ended up playing 21 snaps while Justin Strnad was in for 41 and made the play of the game. With the Broncos down 26-16, he intercepted a Dart pass and returned it 21 yards to the Giants’ 19 with 4:47 left. That led to a Denver touchdown that cut the deficit to 26-23.

Strnad filled in for Greenlaw in the first six games, and played well in those. Through Week 7, he is rated by Pro Football Focus as the No. 24 linebacker in the NFL out of 77.

“He’s a beast. You’ve seen the film. He’s playing great,’’ said Broncos outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper.

“He’s filled in great,’’ Surtain said. “He’s used to this role already, so he’s provided us with a lot of great plays. He’s flying around out there, he’s playing smart, fast, physical. That’s all you want out of your linebackers.”

Strnad did not make himself available when the locker room was open to the media Wednesday. A video showed there was some contact between Strnad and Allen during the Broncos’ celebration on the field after Lutz’s game-winning field goal but it is unclear if he might be fined.

Regarding Greenlaw’s suspension, Payton said he’s “on to the next game.” Then again, Payton did look back Wednesday at his penalty for running onto the field. He even joked about it.

Had the Giants had the ball at the 2, rather than the 1, they might not have scored on the first play after the penalties on Moss and Payton. Had they ended up scoring with less than 37 seconds remaining, that might not have been enough time for the Broncos to complete the two passes they did to get Lutz in position for the winning boot.

“Not even thinking about it, it put them that much closer, they scored, (and) it gave us more time,’’ Payton said with a laugh.

As for Payton running onto the field, defensive lineman Zach Allen said that showed Denver’s players “your head coach has your back.”

“That’s huge,’’ he said. “That goes a long way.”

With that in mind, he then compared what Payton did to what Greenlaw did after the game.

“The same thing we were just talking about with Sean,’’ he said. “When you have a guy that just stands up for us like that, that goes a really long way.”