He saw Bo Nix and Courtland Sutton maneuver on the grass at the Broncos’ facility during organized team activities (OTAs) in June. He saw a quarterback and receiver who could “Ś±š±š±ōĢżwhere the other was. This was the training ground for the second year of the Nix-Sutton partnership, the two growing a shared awareness of space and timing. A tango. A rumba. Swaying to each other’s movements.

Morris knew them both from his days as a college coach. Sutton was Morris’ captain when Morris was rebuilding at Southern Methodist University, from 2015-17 . Nix was Morris’ quarterback when he was an offensive coordinator at Auburn in 2020 , still the most competitive player he’s ever coached. And Morris knew, from just Day 1 at OTAs, that Sutton trusted Nix. And Nix trusted Sutton.

After practice, the three grabbed lunch at the team cafeteria at Dove Valley. At that moment, Sutton’s future in Denver was still unclear, engrossed in extension negotiations after a career-best 81 catches in 2024 . So Morris asked Nix, at that table, about Sutton’s contract.

“Look,” Nix said, as Morris recalled. “We’ve got to get this guy signed. This is my guy.”

Sutton, Nix told Morris, was so much of Denver’s pulse. And so much of its heartbeat.

“I know Bo,” Morris repeated, Nix’s quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator at Auburn. “I know Bo. And I know Bo was sharing that with the management and the ownership of the Denver Broncos. I know that for a fact.ā€

Less than two months later, on July 28, Sutton came bounding out for practice as his representation finalized the particulars of a four-year, $92 million extension with Denver brass.

The Broncos signed the player. Really, though, they signed the pillar.

Sutton has played in 110 of a possible 117 games (excluding a torn ACL in 2020) in his years in Denver . He , while playing for 11 different starting quarterbacks in eight seasons . He’s had five offensive coordinators and five head coaches. And he has never once requested a trade in those eight seasons, sources close to Sutton told The Denver Post.

Sutton’s presence — from Vic Fangio to Sean Payton, from Pat Bowlen to the Penners — sticks in the minds of those who’ve shared a locker with his corner cubby in Denver.

“He wants to be the face of a program, of a franchise, of a building, of a team, however you want to phrase that,” former Broncos quarterback Drew Lock told The Denver Post.

ā€œAnd honestly, that place — with how much turnover there has been — theyā€™re lucky to have a guy like that … (who) can be so even-keeled,ā€ Lock, now the Seahawks’ QB, said.

Has it been easy? No. Heavens, no. Every offseason brought a new offensive carousel. Around Sutton’s third or fourth year in Denver, his frustration started to boil as the end of his first deal approached, fellow former Broncos receiver Tim Patrick recounted. Fellow former Bronco Kendall Hinton chuckled, remembering the times he’d pass Sutton and remember to steer clear.

If Sutton isolated himself, or got quiet, Hinton knew:Ā Let me give ‘Court’ some space right now.

Sutton and the Broncos have found stability in each other during the Payton Era. Nothing’s ever perfect. Frequently, opposing secondaries have shaded Sutton’s way in 2025; Denver’s WR1 is second to Troy Franklin on his own team in targets over the last 12 weeks. Frequently, Sutton’s old high school coach Glen West will flip on a Broncos game on Sundays and wonder if his former receiver is even on the field.

None of it fazes Sutton anymore. Ask Denver’s receivers: Their leader does not care about his touches. He provides a “sense of security” for the rest of his room, as Franklin says. Kyrese Rowan, an undrafted rookie receiver who’s bounced around Denver since May, swears — straight face and all — he’s never seen the 30-year-old vet in a bad mood.

For more than a decade, Sutton has been committed to mastering his own mind. Nobody else’s.

“He has a calmness to him where he knows what he can do on this field, and nothing really surprises him anymore,” Patrick reflected.

“He has stability now with a coach and a quarterback, to where … you donā€™t have to worry about every offseason or every week, some years, where you donā€™t know whoā€™s going to be the starting quarterback,” Patrick continued. “So you can tell, heā€™s at peace.ā€

The beginning

In late 2014, a book called “The Mental Game of Football” made its way to Morris, who’d just been hired as the head coach at SMU. Morris loved it enough to get his recruiting director, Mark Smith , to call the book’s author, Brian Cain . The three met and agreed that Cain would come on in an official role as a mental-performance specialist.

Sutton was one of the first players the staff wanted Cain to work with.

ā€œIf a coach says, ā€˜Hey, I think this is going to be beneficial for you and your development,ā€™ he doesnā€™t ask, ‘Why?’ ” Cain said. “He says, ‘when.’ And that¶¶Ņõap Courtland Sutton to a T.”

Sutton was coming off a redshirt-freshman season for a 1-11 program , and was converting from defensive back to receiver. He wanted his development to happen right then, Morris recalled. So the head coach asked Cain to work with him on mental transitions: flushing the bad, keeping him grounded.

Through Sutton’s next three seasons at SMU and beyond, Cain worked with Sutton on what he called “process goals.” Breathwork. Meditation. Visualization. Journaling. Teammates voted Sutton a captain, and voted him as having the best work ethic on the roster, one of many core values that Cain and Morris tried to establish at SMU.

During fall camp before Sutton’s senior season, core players held a two-hour meeting to deliver individual presentations on implementing the core values.Ā Long after players cleared out at the end of the meeting, Sutton lingered in the back of the room, re-stacking chairs the group had taken from another space down the hall.

ā€œI think of any guy in that program — and any guy Iā€™ve worked with as a college athlete — he understood what was controllable and what was not as good as anybody,” Cain said.

On Wednesday, when asked about Cain, Sutton grinned. Sutton estimated 60% to 70% of football is mental. He is a man of routine, and his routine established at SMU has only compounded in pursuit of self-actualization.

Still, Sutton said he lives by a set of “ABCs” that Cain preaches: Act big. Breathe big. Commit big.

“It’s something so simple,” Sutton said, “but being able to bring yourself back into focus. Into the now. Into where your feet are. I’m a big ‘be where your feet are’ type of person.’ ”

Act big

On Sept. 9, 2018, in the third quarter of his NFL debut against Seattle, Sutton came off the field on third down. Fellow rookie wideout Patrick cycled in, and missed a ball over the middle from then-Broncos quarterback Case Keenum.

Emmanuel Sanders, a 31-year-old veteran receiver, came back with Patrick to the sideline, pulled both he and Sutton aside, and gave both a lashing that would last a lifetime. Four-letter words. Biting words. Patrick was cussed out for not catching the ball. Sutton was cussed out, more importantly, for simply not being out there on third down.

Patrick would not reveal Sanders’ specific words to Sutton, because they are not fit for print. But the sentiment was simple, as Patrick recalled: No matter what’s going on in a game, be on the field on third down. That’s the money down. That’s how you get paid.

“I swear, after he cussed us out, embarrassed us on the sideline,” Patrick recalled, “there was just a different ‘Court.’ Like, he just turned into a different animal on the football field after that.ā€

With first and second-round quarterbacks, with veterans and backups, Sutton’s reliability on third down has only grown in Denver, even as his overall role has fluctuated. Over the past two seasons, Sutton has single-handedly accounted for 39% of the Broncos’ conversions in third-and-long situations (greater than 7 yards), according to Next Gen Stats data compiled by The Post. It’s where his physical leverage best comes into play: Isolate his 6-foot-4 frame, long limbs, and 216-pound strength in press coverage, and he establishes “a lot of trust” from quarterbacks on third down.

“(Nix) understands that …. If you get into any trouble whatsoever, just find me,’ ” Sutton told reporters in late September. ” ‘Iā€™ma be somewhere around.’ ”

A 23-year-old Sutton learned that from Sanders, Patrick believes. They had two veterans in that room in 2018, their rookie year: Sanders and the late Demaryius Thomas, who Sutton still reveres. And a 30-year-old Sutton carries the torch in Denver, years later.

These days, Broncos rookie Pat Bryant goes to Nothing Bundt Cakes on gamedays to pick up specific orders for the entire receivers’ room. Franklin and Devaughn Vele did the same as rookies in 2024. Sanders and Thomas started the tradition; Sutton enforces it now.

He followed Sanders’ words, back then. And he followed Thomas’ actions.

“Theyā€™ve had some guys like Demaryius in the past that have been those kind of people, that are just the rock of that place,” said Steelers receivers coach Zach Azzanni , who coached the Broncos’ wide receivers from 2018-22. “And I think (Sutton’s) that.”

Breathe big

At SMU, Sutton and Cain developed a method they called the “clap” technique. If Sutton dropped a pass, or a play didn’t connect, he’d slap his hands together as a sort of Pavlovian self-conditioning. Wipe the slate clean.

Over the first five years in Denver without a consistent starting quarterback or a stable offensive staff, Sutton learned to control what was within his own sphere, as Azzanni reflected. And the thorn in his side, always, was drops. He dropped nine of his 51 targets in his rookie year in 2018. Six years later, even in a career year with 1,081 yards in 2024, Pro Football Focus credited Sutton as tied with the Cowboys’ CeeDee Lamb for the most drops in the NFL (11).

His response to any adversity — within his control or not — has always been internal. Sutton wears his emotion on his sleeve, Hinton said. But he doesn’t erupt. If Sutton puts his hands on his hips and crosses his legs while standing on the sideline during games, he’s in the middle of processing, according to Morris.

“I know he likes that — throw a little tantrum,” Patrick cracked. “And then once he gets that tantrum out, heā€™s back to normal.”

Sutton’s process has rarely wavered over the years. Undrafted rookie Rowan has sat next to him often in meetings and noticed the veteran’s notebook is still filled to the brim with scribbles. He’s still the most diligent note-taker in the room — in Year 8.

Azzanni began every practice in Denver for years with seven minutes on the JUGS machine; Sutton would be the first receiver out, Azzanni recalled, no matter what.

Sutton’s drop rate in 2025 (6.7%) is now the lowest it’s been in any full season since his only Pro Bowl nod in 2019, according to Pro Football Focus. The misses still come. They linger less.

In Week 5 of October, the Broncos traveled to Philadelphia to play the reigning Super Bowl champion Eagles in one of the biggest regular-season games of Sutton’s career. On Denver’s third play of the game, Nix dropped back to loft a one-on-one pass to Sutton down the right sideline. The ball slid through the empty air between Sutton’s open forearms, and the receiver tumbled face-first into a rough drop.

He got up, tossed his head back, andĀ clappedĀ his hands together.

“You see some guys that may not be as mentally strong, or have that release,” Sutton said. “And one play turns into two plays turns into three, and it carries over to the next game. And then some people spiral. And the last thing you want to do is to have something spiral, because you canā€™t get out of your own head.ā€

Sutton went on to catch eight passes for 99 yards, including three massive fourth-quarter first-down conversions, and the Broncos beat the Eagles 21-17.

Commit big

Before Bo Nix, there was Ben Hicks.

In the third quarter of the first game of Sutton’s junior season at SMU, starting quarterback Matt Davis tore his ACL. SMU’s season suddenly rested on the shoulders of Hicks, the backup QB and a redshirt freshman. Strength coach Trumain Carroll realizing the importance of the coming minutes, went over to Hicks to impart a few words.

Except Sutton was already there, feeding him reassurances, Carroll remembered.

You got this. It’s go time. This is what you’ve been preparing for.

In the season that followed, Sutton spent 15 to 30 minutes after every practice running routes with Hicks and talking through coverages, former SMU safety Jordan Wyatt said. SMU went 5-7 that year, and then 7-5 in Sutton’s subsequent senior season, with Hicks fully running the show.

“He helped Ben grow up,” Carroll reflected. “He helped Ben gain the respect and earn the right to lead the locker room.”

A decade later, Nix shares a certain ESP with Sutton — and a trust — different from any other Bronco receiver. After the Broncos’ win over the Bengals in early October, Nix’s wife, Izzy, and Sutton’s wife, Brea, posted a picture of themselves wearing shirts with Nix and Sutton’s faces A week later, Nix credited Sutton for constantly reminding him he had his back in the Broncos’ comeback win over the Eagles.

“In that situation, it’s almost like — who wants the football?” Nix said, “And ‘Sutt’ wants the football.”

Sutton has committed to Nix. And the rest of the building. Take undrafted-rookie Rowan, who just re-signed to the Broncos’ practice squad this week after being cut last week. He is waiting out a short-term rental home. He knows his current stay might be short. The 24-year-old has no family in Denver, and no partner, and no kids, and no dog, he rattled off to The Post on Thursday.

Sutton knew all this. So he invited Rowan to his home for Christmas.

ā€œI can talk about him all day,” Rowan said. “I talk about him all day with my friends. Because I thought he was, like — if youā€™re a WR1, youā€™ve been in the league for as long as he has, youā€™ve done what heā€™s done, youā€™d expect a little bit of an entitled, cocky (guy).

“But nah. Not at all.”

Sutton has put together another great, if unspectacular, campaign this season: 56 catches, 773 yards, five touchdowns through 13 games . Where could he be, perhaps, if he hadn’t torn his ACL in 2020? Or had more early-career stability? Or played in a different system entirely, where he was force-fed targets?

All of that, though, exists in the past or the future. Not the now. Denver is a “place that appreciates him,” as Lock reflected. And Sutton, Lock believes, understands that.

“Thereā€™s so much going on that you can miss,” Sutton told The Post, “if youā€™re looking past what¶¶Ņõap right in front of you.”

Old man Rivers. Philip Rivers returning to Indianapolis and perhaps even starting this weekend at Seattle is one of the most compelling stories in the NFL this year. Can the 44-year-old really do it? Can he come off the bench cold after five years and not play disastrous football? Conventional wisdom suggests no, but what a story if he can. Everybody will be watching.

Two-way go. The Broncos should very clearly be rooting for Kansas City to get off the skid and beat the Chargers this weekend. Still, the AFC West matchup essentially amounts to a win-win for Denver. If the Chargers win, Kansas City is fully out of the playoff picture. So while a Chargers loss is by far the better outcome for Denverā€™s division title hopes, a Chiefs loss isnā€™t terrible, either. If Jim Harbaugh’s team wins and the Broncos lose to Green Bay, the race in the West is very much on.

Dudes in a dud. Not often you get a matchup of future Hall of Fame-type quarterbacks in December that has as little juice as Baltimore and Cincinnati this weekend. This could have been a top-of-the-division tilt, but instead it’s a 6-7 vs. 4-9 game. The Ravens most certainly arenā€™t out of the picture in the AFC North, but Lamar Jackson and the offense have been going nowhere recently. Meanwhile, the Bengals are out of the playoff race and Joe Burrow is questioning whether playing football is still fun for him. This should almost always be a dynamite late-season matchup. Not this time.

Around the NFC

Crunch time for Lions. Detroit has a massive challenge and a near must-win at the NFC-leading Los Angeles Rams. The Lions are currently sitting in third in the NFC North with 40% playoff odds, . If they manage to beat L.A., those odds jump to 60% before any other Week 15 action. If they lose, the odds plummet to 30%. So, a 30-point swing one way or the other.

Couple Bucs short. There are bad losses and then thereā€™s Tampa Bay blowing a 14-point fourth-quarter lead at home against Atlanta. The Falcons had already been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, but stormed back to beat Baker Mayfieldā€™s Bucs. Tampa’s lost five of six, including New Orleans and Atlanta back-to-back. Carolina can take control of the NFC South on Sunday. Todd Bowles might be looking around and asking, ā€œIs it just me or is this seat a little warm?ā€

Dak attack. Dallas at 6-6-1 needs to win out to have a realistic chance at the playoffs. Their final four isnā€™t impossible. They start this weekend with Minnesota before a tough one at home against the Chargers. Then they finish with roadies at Washington and the New York Giants. That¶¶Ņõap a doable slate for the NFLā€™s leading passer, Dak Prescott, and his terrific receiver duo of CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens.

Game of the Week

Buffalo at New England

If anybody is going to stop New Englandā€™s mega-heater, the Bills are probably the best bet. The Patriots already have a game in hand against Buffalo — the second of their current 10-game winning streak was a 23-20 victory in Western New York ā€” and now they get the defending division champs at home with a chance to put the division on ice.

Mike Vrabel has engineered one of the great single-season turnarounds in league history in his debut season as New Englandā€™s coach and this will be the clubā€™s biggest test to date. The final three isnā€™t a total cake walk — at Baltimore, at the New York Jets and home against streaking Miami ā€” but this feels like the biggest hill left on the route to the AFCā€™s No. 1 seed. Well, that and the fact that Denverā€™s also won 10 straight. The Bills are 1.5-point road favorites. This should be a terrific one.

Bills 24, Patriots 23

Lock of the Week

Las Vegas at Philadelphia

Even after a stumble last week, the Eagles are 1.5 games clear in the NFC East and theyā€™re the only team in the division with a positive points differential. Dallas could mount a run at them, but Philly should be in pretty good shape. All the same, theyā€™ve chewed through a decent amount of their margin for error and still have a road game at Buffalo on the docket. Nick Sirianniā€™s team canā€™t afford a dumb loss. This would be exactly that. The Raiders are in dire straits across the board and are still in the mix for the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. You shouldnā€™t be able to set this line high enough. The sports books have it pegged at 11.5 points. Maybe Raiders coach Pete Carroll can call for a meaningless field goal that covers the spread for the second straight week.

Eagles 27, Raiders 13

Upset of the Week

Miami at Pittsburgh

Every time the Steelers do something notable, they seem to take a step back. They did something notable last week, knocking off Baltimore in a thriller and taking sole possession of first place in the AFC North in the process. Theyā€™ve still got another matchup with the Ravens in Week 18 at home, but in the meantime, theyā€™ve got a chance to potentially build a bit of a lead.

Miami, though, is playing well itself and has won four straight games. That¶¶Ņõap all probably for naught — even if they win their last four games, the postseason odds donā€™t favor Mike McDanielā€™s team ā€” but it makes life difficult for Pittsburgh. Can Aaron Rodgers conjure more high-level December play as a three-point home favorite? Maybe, but not this week.

Dolphins 20, Steelers 19

At least, Margin Hooks tried to coax it out of him, back this offseason. He knew full well that Mims carried unique talent, a receiver Hooks has been training for years. And he knew that Mims carried an equally unique demeanor, a receiver with explosive traits and without an explosive personality. So he prodded the third-year Bronco in training, trying to add a little flavor, as Hooks put it.

And as they worked on fields down back in the South, Hooks sensed a switch flip in his pupil. More assertive in attacking defensive backs. An extra spark when cutting out of his breaks. And longtime WR trainer Hooks issued a prediction, in a June conversation with The Denver Post: Mims would be a 1,000-yard receiver in 2025.

Broncos analysis: Sean Payton, Bo Nix deliver ugly-by-design, 24-17 win vs. Raiders

"He's feeling like this is his time," Hooks told The Post, then.

But one's time, in this league, is never a singular decision. Months later, flickers of a Mims breakout have danced and sputtered. After a six-catch, 85-yard day against the Giants in Week 7, he suffered a concussion in Week 8 on a late return he wasn't even supposed to be in on. Mims returned in Week 11 on a snap count to an offense that was evolving without him, and has received all of five combined touches in the last two weeks.

Through another unpredictable season in Denver for factors beyond his control, though, Mims has been able to center on the one aspect of his Broncos identity that he can control: the return game. It is his greatest advantage, as quarterback Bo Nix said Sunday. Mims has been a two-time All-Pro through his first two years in the league, through years of his offensive utilization coming and going.

And in the second quarter Sunday, he broke loose for a new height he'd never touched: a punt-return touchdown.

"That's his release," Hooks told The Post on Sunday night, after the Broncos' 24-14 win over the Raiders.

"That¶¶Ņõap his -- 'Iā€™m not getting the ball, Iā€™m making it happen this way,'" Hooks continued, a few words later. "And everyoneā€™s not capable of doing that.Ā  But he is.ā€

Keeler: Think Broncos are NFL playoff frauds? Not when Sean Payton calls game like he did vs. Raiders.

It happened in the most pivotal of situations, because these Broncos sat in the danger zone, deadlocked at 7-7 with a 2-10 Raiders team on a completely opposite season trajectory. It happened on pure talent, and a veteran's instinct for a 23-year-old burner. Because, as Mims revealed postgame: he didn't actually have Broncos special-teams coordinator Darren Rizzi's playcall.

"It's one of those high-skiers, and you gotta look up," Mims said postgame, recalling the punt from the Raiders' AJ Cole. "So, you donā€™t know what¶¶Ņõap going on in front of you. So it¶¶Ņõap kind of like a trust thing. And ended up taking a chance."

Mims caught the punt at the Raiders' 48-yard-line, danced, tried to turn upfield, and stopped. Las Vegas's Decamerion Richardson had him dead to rights.

"For a second there, I thought for sure I was going down," Mims recalled.

Except Richardson went high, and Mims ducked. Two yards later, Richardson was sprawled on the turf and Mims had a full head of 4.3-level steam down the left sideline. He pointed ahead for safety JL Skinner, who dashed ahead and leveled a cruel shoulder to block off a flailing dive from Cole.

And Mims pulled into the end zone, with Sunday's game completely flipped, and fired off a Mile High Salute.

"It was amazing, because from my angle, which was pretty like, right there ā€“ just seeing him come out of that pile, that was a big play," head coach Sean Payton said postgame.

It was a feather in Mims' cap for a third straight All-Pro selection as a returner. And it was everything he could've done for the Broncos Sunday, as quarterback Nix pointed.

Mims spent minimal time on the offensive side of the field again, for the following two quarters. He caught just one pass for five yards. He now ranks fifth on the Broncos in catches (25) -- and has fallen squarely behind the sixth-place Pat Bryant in playing time -- through 13 games.

But Mims, since his days at Oklahoma immediately stepping into the shoes of Sooner greats like CeeDee Lamb, has never been wired to demand the ball. He "never complains" about his offensive production, as Nix said Sunday. And Mims shrugged off a strange season when asked postgame.

"If you told me I wouldā€™ve been a two-time All-Pro, two-time Pro Bowler when I entered the league -- I wouldā€™ve said youā€™re insane," Mims said. "So to be where I am right now, I mean, (God's) planā€™s always better than mine. And it¶¶Ņõap been cool.

"Just kinda ā€“ my big thing is, ā€˜You know what? Things might not go the way I want ā€˜em to go,'" Mims continued. "And that¶¶Ņõap, pssh, 90% of players in the league.ā€™ At the end of the day, when my numberā€™s called, when my opportunity comes, I gotta be ready for it."

Mims, he smiled, will never hand-hold his quarterback. Never put more on Nix's plate and ask for the ball, when there's enough on the second-year QB's mind. And heĀ ³¦±š°ł³Ł²¹¾±²Ō±ō²āĢżwon't make a fuss, with the Broncos on a stampede.

Touches are touches, however they come.

"You look at, weā€™re on a 10-game win streak, now?" Mims said. "And it¶¶Ņõap like, ā€˜Dude, Iā€™m not gonna mess this up.ā€™ But I mean, at the end of the day, I mean, weā€™re winning. Weā€™re winning games. I get my opportunities, I try to make the most of ā€˜em, and that¶¶Ņõap what everybody on the team does.

"And everybody has your role, and you just gotta make the most of it," he continued. "And I feel like Iā€™m doing that, and Iā€™m just going to keep on trying to do it.ā€

Snap decision: The Shedeur Sanders Era is ready for lift-off in Cleveland. Thrown into the deep end vs. Baltimore last Sunday, the CU Buffs legend flailed and flopped to the tune of 47 yards on 4-of-16 passing in relief of concussed rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel. That came after Sanders received zero (!) practice snaps with the Browns’ starting offensive line over the first 11 weeks of the season, according to head coach Kevin Stefanski. Now, with a week of reps under his belt, Coach Prime’s son is set to make his first NFL start at the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday. We eagerly await the measured, thoughtful discourse that will follow in its wake.

Backup duty: It would’ve been hard to envision three weeks ago when the Broncos had Davis Mills running for his life inside NRG Stadium, but Houston’s backup QB has revived a once-lost season for the Texans. Starting in place of C.J. Stroud the last three games, Mills has thrown for 719 yards and five touchdowns in leading Houston to three straight wins, including a surprise takedown of Buffalo on Thursday night. Of course, it also helps to have a defensive front — led by Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter ā€” that can terrorize opposing quarterbacks for four quarters. With trips to Indianapolis and Kansas City on the docket the next two weeks, more of the latter will be needed.

First-round fodder: Your AFC division leaders entering Week 12? Denver, New England, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh. Talk about a changing of the guard. Baltimore, Kansas City and Buffalo all have work to do just to make the Wild Card round in early January. And if they do? Well, let’s just say things could get awfully, um, wild during the first weekend of the NFL Playoffs. After the Chiefs’ reign of terror over the last seven years, the AFC has rarely felt more wide open.

Around the NFC

Casino Cowboys: Speculation swirled after receivers George Pickens and CeeDee Lamb were held out of the Cowboys’ opening drive at the Las Vegas Raiders this past Monday night, with one particularly salacious rumor floating around that Lamb was seen throwing up outside a casino the night before. while having dinner and drinks at Red Rock Casino on Sunday night, but denied the upchuck allegations. Far be it from us to cast judgment upon someone losing track of time in a Sin City casino. But before a Monday Night Football game with your team’s season on the line? Tsk, tsk.

What Brown can do for coup: Whoever came up with the phrase “winning cures everything” never met A.J. Brown. The Eagles’ veteran wide receiver is less than a year removed from getting fitted for a Super Bowl ring, and his team is currently No. 1 in the NFC, but you wouldn’t know it if you stood next to his stall in the Eagles locker room or scrolled through his social media accounts after the latest Philly win. Things got so bad last week, for a 10-minute heart-to-heart on the practice field. Let’s hope it produces the desired results for Brown: More targets, more TDs, and maybe even an Eagles win. (In that order, of course.)

Rodgers in Chicago: If there are football gods, Aaron Rodgers will be healthy enough to play when Pittsburgh takes on the NFC North-leading Chicago Bears on Sunday. The former Green Bay QB famously declared “” at the Soldier Field crowd after one of his many touchdowns against the Bears back in 2021. While Rodgers might only be a glimmer of the quarterback who once went 25-5 against the Monsters of the Midway in green and gold, we welcome any opportunity to turn back the clock.

Game of the Week

Tampa Bay at L.A. Rams

Either something is wrong with Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield, or his fourth-quarter magic has simply run dry. The Buccaneers have lost three of their last four games and could desperately use a win with the Carolina Panthers lurking a half-game back in the NFC South. There’s just one problem: Rams QB Matthew Stafford has been shooting laser beams out of his eyes for the better part of seven weeks. The Rams are laying seven points to the visiting Bucs — which feels like a few too many.

Rams 31, Buccaneers 27

Lock of the Week

Seattle at Tennessee

There are two things the Seahawks do better than just about anyone else in the NFL right now: 1) Win on the road, and 2) Obliterate bad teams. They’ll get an opportunity to do both on Sunday when they visit Nashville. The Titans are getting 13.5 points, and that’s still not enough for a team that is one Arizona Cardinals fourth-quarter implosion away from being 0-10 on the season. Could Tennessee really get the No. 1 overall pick two years in a row? Our Magic 8 Ball says “Signs point to yes.”

Seahawks 34, Titans 17

Upset of the Week

New England at Cincinnati

Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow practiced all week and is trending toward returning to the field when the Bengals host Drake Maye and the Patriots on Sunday afternoon at Paycor Stadium. Somehow, the Bengals were still 6.5-point home underdogs as late as Friday morning against the AFC East leaders. The Pats have won eight straight since getting off to a 1-2 start to the season (Sound familiar?). A healthy and rested Joe Cool is ready to burst their bubble.

Bengals 27, Patriots 24

The All-Pro cornerback strained his left pectoral muscle while trying to make a tackle Sunday in Denver’s win against the Cowboys, sources confirmed to The Denver Post on Monday.

The timeframe for Surtain’s return is not exactly clear at this point, though Fox Sports reported an expected absence of 4-6 weeks. Surtain is a candidate to be put on injured reserve, but such a move is not guaranteed, a source said.

If Surtain does land on injured reserve, he would miss a minimum of four games.

Renck vs. Keeler: Can Broncos extend win streak at Houston without Pat Surtain II?

Denver has an interesting schedule coming up that could impact how the team sees Surtain's absence. The Broncos play twice in the next 10 days ā€” at the Texans and then home against Las Vegas on Thursday night, Nov. 6 ā€” but then have only a home game against Kansas City (Nov. 16) in a 23-day span due to a Week 11 bye. The Broncos then return to play Nov. 30 at Washington. That means a four-game absence for Surtain would take his return into December.

Conversely, a three-game absence could still give Surtain more than a month of recovery.

In the final minute of the first half, Surtain wrapped up Cowboys receiver George Pickens after a short gain and tried to wrestle him to the ground. As he did, Surtain fell to his back and let go of Pickens, who was quickly run out of bounds by safety Talanoa Hufanga.

Surtain got up after the play and tried to shake out his left shoulder, rotating it around a few times and touching his chest.

He played the next snap, a Jahdae Barron interception, and tried to jam Pickens, but looked uncomfortable. The CBS broadcast showed him trying to work out his left shoulder while talking with team medical personnel as he went back to the locker room for halftime.

Surtain did not return to the game and didnā€™t speak with reporters after the game, which is standard for players who donā€™t finish due to injury.

The two-time first-team All-Pro also missed time earlier in the game due to a lower-leg injury he sustained while knocking down a pass for Pickens in the end zone on Dallasā€™ opening drive.

Surtain was off to another terrific start this season.

By Next Gen Stats data, the 2021 first-round pick out of Alabama had been targeted 34 times as the nearest man in coverage and allowed 20 catches for 200 yards and no touchdowns.

In Week 7 against New York, he allowed no catches in 37 coverage snaps and entered Sundayā€™s game against the Cowboys allowing the lowest number of yards per coverage snap (0.7) of any defensive back in football.

In the first half against the Cowboys he continued that kind of play while mostly covering Pickens. Surtain was charged with three catches on four targets for 23 yards in his work, but overall, the Broncos did a high-quality job on Pickens and CeeDee Lamb. They each caught seven passes for 78 and 74 yards, respectively, but the pair didnā€™t register a play over 29 yards and didnā€™t get into the end zone.

Coming out of high school, the 5-foot-11 Kris Abrams-Draine received offers from many of the best programs in the country to play wideout. He wanted to play wideout. He went to Mizzou, eventually, to play wideout.

But one offer from former Auburn coach Gus Malzahn still sticks in his craw, all these years later — the only offer Abrams-Draine had to play defensive back.

I don’t play DB,Ā Abrams-Draine told Malzahn.Ā I play receiver.

“When I look at it,'” Abrams-Draine told The Post this summer, “I was like, ‘Man, he see something in me I didn’t see in myself.'”

Abrams-Draine sees it now. He is a “gamer,” as DPOY Pat Surtain said back in camp. He adapts.

Abrams-Draine switched to CB at Mizzou after one year at WR, and grew into the Broncos’ 2024 fifth-round pick. He was the “furthest behind” of any member of his draft class in Denver, general manager George Paton said last offseason. And Abrams-Draine still managed to emerge with just a few flecks of soot after getting thrown in the fire last season, picking off Justin Herbert in a loss to the Chargers and establishing himself as a building block in a spot start.

So the Broncos trusted him enough on Sunday to chuck him in on third down at their 6-yard line against one of the best wideouts in the NFL — Dallas’ George Pickens — in his second defensive snap of the season.

Then they trusted him enough to play the second half as Denver’s erstwhile CB1, after Surtain was removed from the game with a shoulder injury.

“I think how we played was outstanding when he wasn’t in,” head coach Sean Payton said Monday. “And look, that’s a big deal, especially when a large part of your plan is dealing with rotation, and matchups, and when you’re dealing with (CeeDee Lamb and Pickens).

“And then all of a sudden, that one element goes away, it can be a little bit disruptive,” Payton continued. “But I thought Kris did a great job.”

Abrams-Draine racked up eight tackles in just a half on Sunday, and is poised to continue in a massive role in Surtain’s absence. A source confirmed to The Denver Post on Monday night that Surtain suffered a pectoral injury in the Broncos’ 44-24 blowout of the Cowboys, and currently stands as week-to-week with an unclear timetable for return.

Late in the second half against the Cowboys, Surtain tried to wrap up Pickens and twisted 360 degrees while trying to bring the wideout down around his upper body. As Surtain got up, he grabbed at his chest and rotated his left arm in a circle. He was initially announced as questionable to return in the third quarter, .

If Denver deems Surtain’s injury is bad enough to land him on injured reserve — or at least out multiple weeks — that paves a rough road for a young corner who’s still played all of 160 NFL snaps. But Abrams-Draine has been here before, between last year’s Chargers performance and a remarkable performance this preseason. He made plays on the ball constantly during training camp.

“He practices as well as anyone I’ve seen,” Broncos defensive lineman Zach Allen said Monday. “For a young guy, that’s really impressive.”

Of course, it’d be impossible to expect Abrams-Draine to replicate the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year’s production. Payton said Monday that the Broncos continued to play a handful of their planned coverages against Dallas, but he felt coordinator Vance Joseph “did a good job adjusting” to Surtain’s sudden absence. Abrams-Draine surrendered six catches on six targets for 78 yards in the second half. A couple, though, came in garbage time as Joseph dialed up soft coverages to keep the ball in front of the Broncos’ defense.

Abrams-Draine is comfortable in press coverage after playing healthy doses of it at Mizzou. The key to his success as a starter moving forward is “being able to match receivers’ movement” in off coverages, a concept Abrams-Draine said this summer he was less familiar with. Twice on one third-quarter Cowboys drive, Abrams-Draine drifted away from Pickens to help shadow another receiver, eventually leading to 13-yard and 17-yard grabs for Pickens.

Replacing Surtain may well be one of the hardest tasks in the league. But Allen said the Broncos’ locker room has “full faith” in Abrams-Draine.

“Kris is a stud,” Allen said.

“Who’s picking on you more right now?” I asked the Broncos cornerback after Denver’s 44-24 thrashing of the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday at Empower Field. “NFL quarterbacks? Or NFL referees?”

Moss just smiled.

An Iowa guy knows when he’s on the cusp of getting fined.

“It’s a great question,” Moss replied.

“And?” I countered.

Another smile.

“It’s a great question.”

“And?”

“It’s a great question. Leave it at that. It’s a great question.”

Moss has gotten some great slaps up the side of the head from the zebras lately. The pass-interference call at the end of the Giants game would send most defensive backs into therapy.

On the Cowboys’ first drive of the second half this past Sunday, the refs were at it again. Moss racked up two flags inside the Broncos’ 3-yard line thanks to a pair of pass-interference whistles while chasing All-Pro wideout CeeDee Lamb.

“It’s not even PTSD,” the Broncos cornerback told me. “It’s just, at this point, it’s like, ‘You’re kidding me.'”

Things came to a comical head with 11:47 left in the game and the Broncos up 37-17. Prescott misfired to wideout George Pickens with Moss in coverage at the Dallas 44. Out came the laundry. Moss looked borderline apoplectic.

“They were trying to throw at (Pickens), and I absolutely clamped him up, and then the flag is thrown,” he recalled. “And I’m like, ‘God, for what? Like, at this point, you’re kidding me, right?'”

Turns out, he didn’t do anything.

It was on Pickens. Illegal shift.

“It didn’t end up being on me,” Moss laughed. “But, holy cow, dude, like, (you’re) killing me.”

Softly.

A flag at a time.

Pickens, a 6-foot-3 high-riser, finished with 78 yards on nine targets. Lamb logged 74 on 10 targets. Neither scored.

“(Sunday is) a good confidence booster, for not only me but for (Kris Abrams-Draine) coming in there late, for Pat (Surtain II), for (Ja’Quan McMillian), for our back end,” said Moss, who logged a game-high four pass break-ups and six tackles.

“We’ve gone against probably three of the best receiving corps in the league in Philly and Cincinnati, and then now the Cowboys. And we’ve handled our business. And that’s exciting for us.”

Bengals: 106 passing yards. Zero passing TDs.

Eagles: 257 passing yards. Two passing TDs.

Cowboys: 231 net passing yards. One passing TD.

Yeah, yeah, Jaxson Dart, yada, yada.

See the pattern?

Sunday was probably Moss’ most impressive step yet, given the context. NFL Defensive Player of the Year Pat Surtain II, the Broncos’ CB1, made a stellar play to bat away a potential TD catch on Dallas’ first drive. Only he landed awkwardly on the turf during his descent.

PS2 returned to the fold, but not for long. The Broncos star suffered a shoulder injury that knocked him out of the second half entirely.

Trailing 27-10 at the half, with Prescott running the show and needing to throw to get out of the ditch, the Cowboys collected a whopping 147 passing yards in the second half. Without PS2 on the field.

“I didn’t even realize Pat went out until two or three plays in,” Moss recalled, “and we kind of changed up. We played a little bit more 2-man just to protect us over top and stuff. But (Abrams-Draine) came in and did a great job, great job. Didn’t miss a step.”

And the calls?

“You just got to keep playing,” Moss chuckled. “We won the game, bada-bing, bada-boom.”

If the Broncos looked jet-lagged during a short-turnaround, post-London matchup vs. the Giants, the bounce was back Sunday. It was there all week during Dallas prep, too.

“This was by far our best week of practice since I’ve been a Bronco,” Moss gushed. “Everyone was dialed in. Everyone was practicing with (intensity). And we came out here and we killed it. So the biggest thing is just attention to detail during the week and (again) on Sunday.”

Speaking of details, yes, Lamb left him in the dust at one point. And there was the end, when

That got the socials barking. Shannon Sharpe ripped Moss in an ‘X’ post, calling him “the lone cloud over the Broncos’ impressive (game today). He’s been awful. From start (to) finish.”

Not sure about that one, Unc.

OK, so who’s picking on Moss more right now: NFL QBs, NFL refs, or Shannon Sharpe?

Alex Singleton grinned at that one.

“You know what? What Riley does is special,” the Broncos linebacker said. “Anyone that plays across from Pat has to be an incredible player. And Riley’s playing out of his mind this year. It’s really special. And it’s fun to watch.”

Even when the hankies fly. Bada-bing. Bada-boom.

1. Full coverage: Empower Field held its breath when Pat Surtain II left the field on Dallas’ first drive of the game. Third down. Ball on the 6. And quarterback Dak Prescott armed with two of the best wideouts in the game (CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens). After Riley Moss had just gotten beaten deep by Lamb three snaps earlier, Prescott’s choice was obvious. So what does Moss do? Lock down Lamb, swat a crossing route to the turf and force a field goal. Even after PSII left the game for good to start the second half, the secondary held up (when it mattered). Outside linebacker Dondrea Tillman even delivered a 38-yard interception return.

Broncos report card: Sean Payton, Bo Nix throw kitchen sink at Cowboys in blowout win

2. All blocked up: It would be hard to draw up better blocking than what Broncos rookie running back RJ Harvey received on his first touch -- a toss left that saw left tackle Garett Bolles and left guard Alex Palczewski open up a turnpike off the left edge as right guard Quinn Meinerz trucked two Cowboys 10 yards downfield. That Harvey waltzed in for a 40-yard touchdown was elementary. The blocking hero of Denver's next TD? None other than J.K. Dobbins, who shifted to his left to take on blitzing safety Markquese Bell, then stood his ground for a beat to give quarterback Bo Nix enough time to find Troy Franklin in the end zone. Total. Team Effort.

3. Orange crush: Does anyone do branding better than the Broncos? The Orange Crush regalia was everywhere on a crisp fall afternoon inside Empower Field. Well, almost everywhere (more on that later). The field wrap. The scoreboards. The end zones. The cheerleaders. The press materials. And, of course, that classic, never-should-have-gone-away helmet-and-uniform combination. We all know about those helmets ... and those classic orange tops. But the true piĆØce de rĆ©sistance? Gotta be those striped socks.

4. Halfway home: Take away Pat Surtain II's injury, and this was just about a perfect day for Sean Payton's Broncos. If forced to offer a critique, perhaps it would've been nice had Payton played along with the Orange Crush theme? Is it really that hard to accept another free hat and hoodie, Coach? Then again, being a grump is Payton's brand. So is wizard-like offensive play-calling. He brought both to the stadium on Sunday. And now his Broncos are 6-2 with the halfway point of the season just about here. This was an easy hurdle to clear, and they did it with requisite ease ... and with their best player on the field for only half the game. Can't ask for much more than that.

The Broncos cannot keep winning this way, by stinking for long stretches, then creating goosebumps that leave us running for the history books. It is not sustainable, like making every green light when late for work.

Denver is the player hitting .300 with 15 bloopers. Regression looms without a course correction.

Blame Sean Payton’s play-calling if you must. But here’s the thing: Bo Nix has to play better.

Time for the captain, who is a dude in the fourth quarter, to prove he’s The Man for a full game. It is something we have not seen since the rout of the Bengals. Want to be considered a top 10 quarterback? Outplay the Cowboys’ Dak Prescott, who is on a career heater.

This is not what ¶¶Ņõapountry wants to hear. For a fan base that grew restless and desperate for a reason to believe after 13 quarterbacks failed to replace Peyton Manning, Nix represents hope. He is the reason the Broncos are relevant, a notion enforced by his spectacular rookie season.

But this year has looked different, uneven.

Nix has given us all the feels with his nervy finishes, and this cannot be ignored.

The Broncos boast a four-game winning streak, but the last three defy logic.

Nobody is demonstrating consistency on offense. Not the coordinator (Dick Monfort will sell the Rockies before Payton gives up play calling). Not the running backs. Not the receivers. Not the marquee free-agent tight end (Evan Engram) the coaching staff maddeningly ignores in the first and third quarters (Engram has 12 targets in those spots in six games).

But Nix deserves blame, too. It comes with the expectations this season.

“We know we have an execution problem,” Nix acknowledged Wednesday.

The statistics over the last 12 quarters reveal splits more common for the Rockies at home and on the road. Of how Bo Nix has been forced to overcome No Nix.

In the fourth quarters against the Eagles and Giants, and first quarter against the Jets, Nix completed 35 of 46 passes for 389 yards and four touchdowns, including two rushing. In the other nine quarters, Nix is 35 of 73 (below 50 %) for 306 yards and zero scores.

Tom Brady becomes Brady Quinn. Greg Maddux becomes Mike Maddux.

There has been so much chatter about starting faster. The issue is the middle of games. Where’s the beef?

The Broncos have not scored in the third quarter since Week 3. They have not scored in the second quarter since Week 4.

Nix makes us forget these donuts with his late work. Nobody has to be a star — Courtland Sutton is the closest thing the Broncos have among the skill players ā€” when he goes video game mode.

Truth is, Nix cannot keep making up for the deficits on the scoreboard and deficiencies around him. Not against good teams. Sorry, Giants fans, your team is plucky, but little else. The Cowboys are average, but their offense is not.

Nix is not going to be able to cover for another barren stretch against a Dallas offense that averages 24.3 points per game on the road and features the triple-threat of Jake Ferguson, George Pickens and CeeDee Lamb.

What has to happen?

First, Nix needs to hit a few deep balls. He has been inaccurate on those throws. Payton, for all of the customer in-box complaints, schemes guys open. Nix has to nail a few or at least give his targets an opportunity to make a play or draw an interference call.

We know he can do it, as evidenced by his work against the Browns, Bengals and Bills last season.

Not connecting leads to an overreaction. Payton leans on passes behind the line of scrimmage — nobody does it at a higher rate ā€”Ā and screens. Those require elite execution, blocking, play-making. That rarely happens.

Is some of this on Nix with ball placement and timing? Yeah. Can it be fixed? Sure.

But there is a more viable solution. Get Nix into rhythm with the mid-range game and play-action passes. The completion that got him right against the Giants came with 1:25 left in the third: a 16-yard out to Sutton. Then the run game happened. And Nix was part of it. Until last Sunday, his designed rushing attempts were down from a year ago.

There is no good reason Nix should run for less than 40 yards per game. He is one of the best athletes on the field.

If teams want to use man coverage — the Cowboys experimented with more of it last week ā€” then Nix should take off. And Payton has to dial up runs for his quarterback, not waiting until the final minutes when everyone is frantic and desperate.

Franchise quarterbacks make everybody better. There are times Nix has made things worse.

In the first two games, he struggled. He wasn’t seeing the field, and he was reacting to pressure that wasn’t there. He found himself against the Bengals, but it has been a mixed bag since. Payton, for sure, creates issues by asking too much of Nix — he is in his second season, not his 10th ā€” and getting him to the line of scrimmage late, a process muddied by personnel changes.

But Nix has dealt with mechanical flaws and become too structured, forcing throws instead of taking easy first downs with his legs.

Because of the dumpster fire that preceded him, many want to give Nix an out when things don’t look right, myself included.

Things have changed. The Broncos want to play into February. So, when Nix leads an offense that went 16 straight possessions without a touchdown over the past two weeks, we cannot excuse it.

Nix is not having the same year, even if his projections (27 touchdowns, 10 interceptions) are close to 2024 (29 and 12).

He goes into a cocoon for long stretches. Then he goes Canton in the fourth quarter.

Last Sunday, he was outplayed by Jaxson Dart for 50 minutes. He wasn’t getting a lot of help. Again, we expect more from a franchise quarterback. We expect him to make everyone better, like he did in his latest comeback.

Nix is talented, smart and clutch. But if he wants to move into the league’s upper crust, taking this team with him, do it against Dak.

The former Broncos running back returns to Denver on Sunday with the Cowboys looking not only the best he has since a devastating 2022 knee injury, but perhaps in the finest form of his career.

Through seven games, the 2021 second-round pick of the Broncos has rushed for 592 yards and six touchdowns ā€” already surpassing the 519 and four he compiled in 17 games for Denver last season.

Heā€™s generated 30 first downs on the ground, matching his mark from a year ago. Heā€™s already got more yards after contact this year (462) than he generated all of last year and his 4.2 per carry after contact is not only the best mark of his career, but it¶¶Ņõap more than he averaged per carry, period, either of his final two seasons with the Broncos.

Williams has also hit 15 miles per hour 18 times this season, according to Next Gen Stats, already four more times than last year. He didnā€™t have a run longer than 21 yards since his rookie season in Denver. Earlier this year, he rumbled for 66.

It all adds up to two realities: Williams is all the way back, and the Broncos have a big challenge on their hands Sunday.

ā€œIā€™m one of his biggest fans,ā€ Payton said Friday. ā€œThereā€™s always that, ā€˜What¶¶Ņõap the market?ā€™ And I think that he found a great opportunity. You talk about a wonderful guy. Tremendous guy, tremendous player, smart. Iā€™m glad heā€™s in the NFC.ā€

The Broncos didnā€™t make Williams an offer as he approached free agency this offseason, and the sides were expected to go their separate ways through most of the winter and spring.

Williams this week called the split ā€œmutual.” He signed a one-year deal worth $3 million with the Cowboys this spring.

“We bet right,” Dallas head coach Brian Schottenheimer said this week.

It¶¶Ņõap turned out well for both sides. Williams has returned to form in Dallas, and the Broncos have been among the leagueā€™s more efficient running teams thanks to the work of J.K. Dobbins, who not only signed a similar deal as Williams but also overcame a similar injury earlier in his career.

Williams, in particular, is benefiting from the dynamic nature of Dallasā€™ offense. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is playing at an MVP level, and heā€™s got two premier receivers to throw to in CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens. Tight end Jake Ferguson is fourth in the NFL with 50 catches. That gives defensive coordinators a lot to account for.

“They’re averaging, I think, 6.2 yards per rush in 11 personnel because they’re seeing a bunch of shell and they’re handing the ball off and getting clean boxes,ā€ Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph said this week, noting the decision becomes whether to leave defensive backs exposed in coverage or ask your defensive front to stop the run with lighter numbers up front.

“That’s the challenge,ā€ he said. ā€œThat’s the cat-and-mouse game you have to play.”

Williams, though, is a big part of that challenge.

ā€œHeā€™s playing at a high level also,ā€ Joseph said. ā€œHe looks like he has his legs back, explosive, heā€™s breaking tackles. Heā€™s catching the football. Heā€™s playing on all three downs, so Iā€™m happy for that dude. Heā€™s such a great person.

ā€œObviously, that¶¶Ņõap our opponent on Sunday, so we have to get him stopped. But Iā€™m happy for him.ā€

The teams are tied for third in the NFL at 4.9 yards per carry so far, and, interestingly, the Broncos are actually well ahead of Dallas in overall rushing yards per game. They check in No. 6 at 131.9 yards while the Cowboys are No. 14 at 122.1.

Denver defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers raved about Williams but also said he doesnā€™t think Williamsā€™ history with the Broncos is any kind of advantage or disadvantage.

ā€œYouā€™re talking about a year removed, different scheme, different guys blocking for him and stuff,ā€ Franklin-Myers said. ā€œWe know the player ā€” we know heā€™s going to do a good job breaking tackles and stuff. He does a good job of running through arm tackles. We know weā€™ve got to actually hit him. Ee know weā€™ve got to bring our feet.ā€

You know the challenge is a big one when powerlifting and professional wrestling come up.

ā€œYou get population to the ball and I donā€™t care if it¶¶Ņõap Mark Henry,ā€ Franklin-Myers said. ā€œIt donā€™t have to be Derrick Henry. You can put the Big Show back there and heā€™s gonna get hit.ā€