It was January 11, 1987 his team was down a touchdown and pinned at the 2 yard line. Someone entered the huddle and announced to his teammates, "we got them right were we want them."

How could he even think such a thing? Over the course of the year, he and his team had made plays that gave him confidence in himself and his teammates that they could drive the length of the field for a touchdown to tie the score. Leaving no time for the opposing team to be able to get the ball and score themselves. His teammates didn't argue with him, they felt his confidence and was assured they could do this. The result of course was The Drive.

What does this have to do with the immaculate deflection? 2 things.

1) It was not just pure luck! The team has practice deflection drills all year. Stokley had the talent and training to be in a position to receive the deflected pass. He also had the talent that without looking to feel where and how close the defender was to him that was chasing him. If the defender had caught him and tackled him inbounds, game over Denver loses. If he would have looked behind he would have been caught and tackled. Despite the luck that was involved (I'm not saying there wasn't any) there still was the talent to make the luck work.

2) During a course of a season there are plays that just draws teams closer together. That gives them confidence in each other, in themselves as a team. That gives them an identity. Now no doubt this is early in the season but this play is going to be replayed in these players mind all year. It will go a long way in giving them an identity of being a scrappy team. The offense had a bad day. Only had 10 first downs yet they were close enough at the end to make a play to win the game. No doubt the offense has great respect for their defense and sometime this year it will be the defense that will have a bad day. Do you not think that the offense will have remember this day and know it is now their turn to bail out the defense? This team will have confidence that know matter how bleak things may seem at the end of the game that this team has the talent to pull off miracles just like the 86 Broncos were able to do.