The sun is shining, as somehow beautifully and awkwardly, fall has been extended into January for the Broncos. The scab has been ripped off, and just like clockwork, we are united in orange.
Denver is once again a football city, home to an NFL contender.
The Broncos secured the AFC’s No. 1 seed on Sunday with a 19-3 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers, meaning the road to Super Bowl LX goes through Empower Field at Mile High.
“It is the best feeling in the world,” said left tackle Garett Bolles, the longest-tenured Broncos player. “We are a tough team to beat here. So, come on, now, get ready folks, we will be back soon.”
Broncos clinch No. 1 seed, set out on Super Bowl chase: ‘You can see the light’
There is no turning back. Ready or not, the Broncos own the best odds to advance to their ninth Super Bowl. They finished the regular season with 14 wins, leaving fans yelling, "Let's Go Broncos!" as they spilled into the streets outside the stadium.
The chant will stick in my head after the Broncos defense saved a charmed season against Chargers backups with Denver's offense slinking into turtle mode.
It's been 10 years since this has happened around here. The Broncos will sit at home as the playoffs start, staring down at the rest of the wide-open field. After earning an idle week, they will face the lowest remaining seed, someone like the Steelers, Texans, Bills or Chargers.
It only took the four head coaches, hundreds of players, and the drafting of a franchise quarterback, though Bo Nix should not be blamed for wanting to burn this game film, to return Denver to its rightful perch.
"It is special. The toughness, the will, to see it all come together, it means a lot," edge rusher Nik Bonitto said. "It has all led up to right now. Itap been a three-year run of getting the right people in the building."
Two home wins. That is all that is required to play in the NFL's final game in Santa Clara, Calif., next month. As coach Sean Payton said, "We can see the light."
So, why does it feel like an oncoming train?
Truth is, nobody makes a win feel like a loss quite like the Broncos.
They have trailed in 12 of their 14 victories. They have a negative turnover margin.
Sunday's first-half performance made drying paint seem like a night at Studio 54. The Broncos finished with eight first downs against a Chargers defense playing only eight of its starters. And the fact that Los Angeles quarterback Trey Lance posted nearly identical passing yards as Nix (136 to 141) does not inspire confidence.
"Itap not perfect. Itap not pretty," tight end Evan Engram said. "You would love to go out, go bombs away and score 45 points every week. But at the end of the day we got the job done. It is as simple as that."
Over the past month, Payton has instructed fans how they should cheer. After Sunday, it was fair to wonder: Do they get to tell him how to call plays? Asking for 74,801 of my closest friends.
When Payton told apountry again last week to get loud, not sure voracious booing of his offense is what he had in mind. Payton admitted, "I wasn't as sharp as I wanted to be."
In fairness, Payton was mindful of who the Broncos were playing, saying Lance facing the Broncos defense conjured images of his Saints facing Denver with receiver Kendall Hinton at quarterback in the 2020 COVID game.
Lance represented a wild card. But he was also unlikely to succeed without the Broncos turning the ball over. Still, for nine years since Peyton Manning retired, they would have lost a game like this.
They no longer break hearts because their defense breaks records (and avoided one). The Broncos finished with a franchise-best 68 sacks in a season. The two takeaways also gave them 14 for the season, one more than the club's all-time low set in 2008.
Broncos-Chargers report card: Denver wraps up No. 1 seed, but Sean Payton’s offense sputters
Another ugly win that remained in doubt way too late into the night? What is new?
"We," star cornerback Pat Surtain II said, "are battle-tested."
It impossible not to appreciate this team's accomplishment. Four years ago, the fans had to count down the play clock for Russell Wilson and players were fighting each other on the sideline. Under Payton, they have improved from eight to 10 to 14 wins, despite $45.5 million in dead cap money this season from cutting players to improve performance and culture.
The Broncos make it hard to envision a Super Bowl run when yards are so hard to come by. But with fans with orange wigs, blue mohawks, painted faces, traffic-cone-colored cowboy hats and Darth Vader masks reaching 118.6 decibels, it is hard not believe there is something special happening.
For weeks, the new stadium has been shaking like the old one, with a sea of orange crazies showing just how starved this state and this region have been for the Broncos to be good again.
Their team statistics scream they should have eight or nine wins.
They are more erratic than dominant. They are more dramatic than consistent.
They are home free. But not free from criticism.
Just how they like it.
"To see this team become what it is, it is amazing. I could not be more proud," Bolles said. "I am telling you, this is just the beginning."
