The Denver Broncos likely saved their season in the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. Down 17-3, getting blown out by multiple scores in that game would have undoubtedly shaken the confidence of this young team. Instead, they rallied and came away with an improbable comeback against the defending champs on their home turf.
A comeback win like that, should have the inverse effect and spark a run here through the middle part of the season. With ‘home’ games in five of their next
six, with one of those home games in London though, they are playing a host of teams with some big flaws. If they do get on a run, they could host the Kansas City Chiefs in a month or so with an 8-2 record. That would be a massive home game, but I am getting a little ahead of myself. I can’t help it. It’s been a long time…
Anyway, back to this 21-17 victory over the Eagles. They beat a team that has been struggling offensively, but did so in a way that should inspire a lot of confidence. I love those kinds of wins and I look forward to see how they respond against a likely inferior opponent next week. That should tell us a lot in terms of whether they will go on a run or continue to revert to their old inconsistent ways. I hope its the former, obviously.
Anyway, here is what our Mile High Report staff learned from this Week 5 victory:
1. Sean Payton’s risk-taking pays off big.
Sean Payton has big balls. That 2-point call was ballsy and ended up being the difference in this game. – Scotty Payne
2. Denver playing to win.
The team, led by Bo Nix, has MoJo. Down 17-3 going into the 4th quarter, during a game where not much was going right for or looked very good by the offense, and Nix and Payton said, “So what?” and then scored 18 unanswered points against the defending champs at one of the toughest places to play an away game. The Broncos were a team playing to win rather than playing not to lose. – Laurie Lattimore-Volkmann
3. Staying under the radar.
The media will never give the Broncos the credit they deserve. Every highlight from the national media was about the collapse of the Eagles. The focus was on what the Eagles did wrong. Bo Nix and the offense were a secondary story. The defense forcing Philly to go away from Saquon Barkley, and then beating them with their rush and great coverage was almost never mentioned. And that’s ok. Keep underestimating Sean Payton and his big balls. – Adam Malnati
4. Potential beginning to shine.
The Broncos have the potential for a special season. Yes, I know it’s one game. And there is a lot of football to be played. But if this team plays the way it did in the fourth quarter, it’ll beat any team in the NFL. We saw the Broncos play the brand of football that travels and wins games in January. It was complementary football that showed us what this team is capable of as the season progresses. – Ian St. Clair
5. AFC West is now up for grabs.
That this team can win the division.
This week’s learning is the perfect complement to last week’s learnings. We learned last week that Denver is capable of whipping up on lower competition, which is what good teams and contenders should do.
This week, we closed out the other side of that equation that has been missing since Peyton Manning days – we beat a defending Super Bowl champion and top contender in the league.
And it was the way we beat them that inspired confidence as well. Good teams rally and find ways to win on the road against top teams. You have to be able to do this to have any chance of a playoff run and this Broncos team did it.
Between this week and last, the Denver Broncos are putting the league on notice. This team should be in the conversation of top NFL squads and can make a deep playoff run. -Jeff Essary
6. The offense CAN be clutch after all.
This offense can come through in the clutch. Everyone contributed to that outstanding fourth quarter comeback. The offensive line was firing on all cylinders in both the run and pass game. JK Dobbins was running as hard as we’ve seen him run. The receivers were making big time catches, stretching the field, and picking up yards after the catch. Bo Nix was fricken slinging it and getting the offense into the best position possible. And Sean Payton has gone full October. – Ross Allen
7. Learning how to win close games.
The Bronco team has learned how to win close games. I know it was only one game, but this is a reversal of what we have seen over the last two plus seasons with Sean Payton when the team would lose almost all of these close games. Remember this team is one leverage penalty and one final drive stop from being 5-0 right now. – Joe Mahoney
