Fair or not, the Broncos have a reputation for being soft and finesse. Their poor Super Bowl performance against the Seahawks in February spoke for itself.
It wasn’t only just that game. In the Broncos’ 43-21 loss to the Patriots few weeks ago, they went belly up rather than respond by throwing a touchdown of their own when the Patriots took a 13-7 lead against them in the second quarter after trailing 7-6. They also were pushed around by the Rams in their 22-7 loss to them in Week 11.
On Sunday, the Dolphins pushed the Broncos around in the first half. It was clear the Broncos were frustrated as they headed to the locker room. Based on this trend of lying down after getting pushed around, this did not look good heading to the second half.
Funny thing happened. The Broncos fought back in the fourth quarter. They played physical against the Dolphins. They were able to get to the Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill often in the second half. Their offensive line manhandled the Dolphins linemen. Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning started playing through the blitzes by throwing for first downs and touchdowns. Even better, the Broncos decided to use the running game by letting C.J. Anderson run through the Dolphins defensive tackles.
It added up to the Broncos scoring 22 unanswered points in the fourth quarter that helped them earn a 39-36 victory over the Dolphins at Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium.
This win had to be the most rewarding win of the season for the Broncos. It’s funny that statement is even uttered against a team like the Dolphins, but in so many ways, it feels like an accomplishment.
For one thing, the Broncos were a tired team when the media interviewed the players. The players put so much energy in engineering the comeback, which the Broncos trailed 28-17 to the Dolphins in the fourth quarter.
Second of all, this team showed they can take a punch and fight back rather than roll over. They proved to themselves more than the Dolphins that they would respond to adversity. Yes, it’s one game, but they have to finally show they were going to do something about it.
Finally, they beat a good Dolphins team that outplayed the Broncos for most of the game.
Make no mistake. Had the Broncos lost this game, there would be many questions about the makeup of this team and how good they really are. The reputation of them being soft would take a life of its own.
These guys certainly did soul-searching at halftime and in the third quarter. They knew they had to do something about this deficit at home. To lose at home in this fashion would have been deflating. They had to prove themselves that they are tough and resilient.
Yes, the Dolphins are not the Patriots, Seahawks or any elite team, but that’s a good team the Broncos had to beat. Plus, this is a Broncos team that finally won from behind after being used to winning games when they were ahead.
Maybe the Broncos learned something about themselves from that win Sunday. We will see how that translates in January when they are trailing in a playoff game. They hope they won’t be in that position.
One game does not change the perception of Broncos being soft. It will take more than that. The only way they can change that if they can pull off a comeback in the playoffs or if they win at Foxborough if they play the Patriots in the AFC championship game.
For one week, the Broncos don’t have to answer questions about how soft they are. They don’t have to deal with clutter about them being finesse. Maybe that’s why it was more of a relief than a celebration when they pulled off an 11-point comeback to beat the Dolphins.
If the Broncos want to show this isn’t a one-time thing, they will have that opportunity when they play the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday Night Football. Winning at Arrowhead won’t be easy. It’s going to take this team to be physically tough to win that game.
Maybe this comeback win against the Dolphins can serve as a springboard to next week’s game and beyond.
The Broncos can only hope that’s the case.
Contact or Follow Leslie Monteiro: @LightRodWriter
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Leslie Monteiro
Leslie is a contributor for Lightning Rod Sports. He covered high school sports in Bergen County out in North Jersey, and has written op-ed columns on sports such as Bleacher Report and NY Sports Digest.
