The Broncos welcomed an old friend as former head coach Mike Shanahan returned to Denver as the head coach of the visiting Washington Redskins. Denver, coming off a loss at the hands of the Colts a week earlier, played what was one of their best games of the season on both sides of the ball. The Broncos rallied to blow past the Redskins and win 45-21. The win gives Denver a 7-1 record as they head into their bye week. More importantly, it got Denver back on the winning track, and the defense was one of the big stories of this game. A fourth quarter rally was also the highlight as Denver stormed back from a 21-7 deficit to take control of the game in the final quarter. Here are my thoughts and observations on the game......
1) The Broncos ran a video tribute for Mike Shanahan before the game, and the Broncos fans gave him a standing ovation as well. It was a nice touch by the Broncos organization, and Shanny handled the whole situation with class as expected. He might get some grief for his last few years in Denver, but Shanahan is the best coach in Broncos history by far. I was glad that the fans and the Broncos gave him a nice salute before the game.
2) Give credit to the Broncos defense in this game. They deserve the game ball. This was their best effort of the season by far. They forced four straight punts to start the game, and they really only gave up one drive to the Skins all day. Washington score a touchdown close to the end of the first half to tie the game at 7, but the Broncos had a 12 men on the field penalty on the field goal attempt, and it gave the Redskins a first down, and they converted it for a touchdown. Washington's second touchdown was a result of a strip sack of Peyton Manning deep in Denver territory. Denver's defense absolutely destroyed Robert Griffin III. I haven't seen the Broncos defense pound a QB as bad as they pounded RG III all day. The defense capped off the day with four interceptions to end the game, and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie added a 75 yard interception return to cap off the game with 2:07 left.
3) Von Miller showed up this week big time. His strip sack of RG III in the fourth quarter was one of the biggest plays of the game. It is nice to see him back affecting the game from a defensive standpoint. Also, it was nice to see Chris Harris get another huge interception in the fourth quarter, and Wesley Woodyard returned to the lineup as well.
4) The best part of this game outside of the defensive performance was the way that Denver turned it on once they fell down 21-7. After Manning had back-to-back turnovers in the third quarter (Sack and fumble and a pick-six to DeAngelo Hall), the Broncos turned the game around. Manning and the offense put together a nice drive and converted a fourth down to punch it in with Montee Ball to make it 21-14. After forcing a Redskins punt, the Broncos put together a classic drive punctuated by a fourth and goal touchdown pass from Manning to Joel Dreessen to make it 21-21. After a three and out, the Broncos took advantage of a shanked punt, and the Broncos immediately converted with a sweet 35-yard screen pass from Manning to Knowshon Moreno to make it 28-21. After Von Miller sacked RG III and forced a fumble, Denver was able to convert a field goal to extend the lead to 31-21. After the teams traded interceptions, the Broncos put the game away on a Manning to Demaryius Thomas 35 yard screen play to make it 38-21. It was awesome to see Denver's offense completely turn the game around and convert big plays when they needed it.
5) Manning finished 30-44 for 354 yards and 4 touchdowns. He did throw 3 interceptions and lost a fumble on a sack. Overall, Manning played well and he made the big throws when he needed to, but he was hobbled by two ankle sprains that stemmed from the last two weeks. He is definitely not healthy right now, but he was able to make a lot of "Dink and dunk" throws that he lived on last season. Hopefully, Manning's ankles will heal better, and once they do, his throws will be back to more of the vertical and deep ones that we saw earlier in the year.
6) The game was an important one because Denver needed to get back on the winning track and they did. Their defense needed to step up, and for the first time all year, they really dominated the game. The offense turned it up when it faced some adversity, and those are all good signs as we head to the second half of the season. Denver is 7-1 and kept pace with the 8-0 Chiefs in the AFC West. The Broncos head into their bye week with a chance to rest and get healthy for a big game in two weeks at San Diego on November 10th. It was definitely a solid win all around.
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