Here’s the good news: The Denver Broncos have gone 17-4 in their last 21 games
There’s the not-so-good news: The Denver Broncos have won 12 of those 17 games by one score or less.
The Broncos may be winning a lot of football games, but they’re living on the edge. One break doesn’t go Denver’s way and suddenly those 12 wins become six and the Broncos are fighting and clawing to earn a playoff spot, let alone a Super Bowl championship.
Every week, Broncos Country waits for the other shoe to drop. We wait for the lack of offensive firepower to finally drag the Denver defense down like an anchor. And yet … the Mile High Magic remains.
At some point, maybe this is simply whom the Denver Broncos are? Maybe they keep winning close games because they’re uniquely built to do so. And if that’s the case, it all starts with the defense, which manages to make play after play when the Broncos need it the most.
Here’s what they had to say about their dominate unit following the big victory on Sunday:
Gary Kubiak on the Broncos’ two defensive scores
“It looked like to me, throughout the course of the game, we were close a couple of times. We had a couple of chances to make some big plays defensively. We just kept battling. I think our pressure was excellent over the course of the day, especially late in the game. The great thing about Aqib is if he ever gets his hands on the ball, he’s not only a DB, but a returner, too. That was a great run on his part and [OLB] Von [Miller] knocking that ball loose at the end closes the football game.”
Kubiak on winning close games
“We’re two into a 16-game season and we have a long way to go. There’s a lot of encouraging things from young guys. I’m encouraged today to lose key players and still go win a big game. That’s something you have to do in the NFL because it’s going to happen to you. We just have to stay focused on what’s going on and now we have to go do it on the road against a great football team. I think if we just stay hard on ourselves, keep plugging and keep getting these young guys better, the goal is to get to be as good as we can possible be. We are definitely not there yet.”
Von Miller on the defenses mentality at the end of games
“It’s time to close. They’ve got to score. They don’t have timeouts. We’re going to rush. The secondary, [CBs] Chris [Harris], [Aqib] Talib and those guys are going to lock. We’re just going to rush. That was the mindset that we went into it, and it worked out for us.”
Aqib Talib on his pick-six
“It was a third and long play, and coach (Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips) called a vision defense. I saw our D-line got pressure on [Colts quarterback Andrew] Luck, so I kind of just sat down in my zone with anticipating seven stop, and that’s what he ran. I was able to make the play, make a guy miss and go home.”
Shaquil Barrett on Von Miller’s clutch ability
“He most definitely comes through in the clutch. He’s the guy I want rushing off the edge on fourth-and-ten and last play of the game. I already know he’s going to get it.”
Chris Harris on this year’s defense compared to last year’s
“We feel like we’re going to be better. We’ll just continue to work and continue to get better. At this point last year, we didn’t think we were this solid like we were today. We didn’t shut down Andrew Luck at this time last year so now we’re ahead of the game. We have a tough match-up on the road next week, another great receiver [WR] A.J. Green so it’s a challenge every week, especially at my position.”
Brandon Marshall on if people are sleeping on the defense
“I think they are, definitely. Everybody’s sleeping on this defense. I’m pretty sure we woke them up today. We scored two touchdowns on defense. I think Luck had 150 yards passing and he’s one of the best quarterbacks in the league. They’re definitely sleeping on us.”
Shane Ray on the defense being better this season
“I believe so. I think we’re getting better every day. Every opportunity we get we take full advantage of it. We don’t even want to think about last year. We’re working on this year. We have some great guys and lost some great guys. We have to reload every year. We don’t know who’s going to be here or what could happen. Our goal is to be better than we were.”
Emmanuel Sanders on watching the Denver defense
“Our defense, they’re playing exceptionally well, we know that. We know we have one of the best, if not the best. I feel that we have the best defense in the league, the best secondary in the league and [OLB] Von [Miller] just showed what he can do so it’s fun to watch those guys. It’s a whole bunch of great players, a whole bunch of Pro Bowl players doing it.”
