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Fortunately, we have two prime examples of teams that went down kicking and screaming in this years' playoffs and they both happened during the Super Bowl.
The first is a good example of what John Elway meant by going down kicking and screaming in the playoffs. Tom Brady and the New England Patriots found themselves down 24-14 in the fourth quarter against the best defense in football. By the time the two minute warning sounds, Tom Brady had the New England Patriots up 28-24. That, my friends, is going down kicking and screaming. It's the kind of will that great teams have and demonstrate when the chips are down.
The second is a bad example of kicking and screaming. It's more like what a toddler does when they don't get their way. It is what the Seattle Seahawks defense did after realizing they blew it. As you can see from the picture above, they resorted to cheap shots and fist fights. That is not the kind of kicking and screaming Elway wants from the Denver Broncos.
At the end of the day, the Patriots once again showed the NFL what a well-coached and highly talented football team can achieve. That is six Super Bowl appearances in thirteen seasons. Whatever taint people want to throw their way, I'd take six Super Bowls in thirteen seasons every day of the week and twice on Sunday.
That is what John Elway is looking to bring back to Denver. The kind of winning ways that he enjoyed as a player who appeared in a now former NFL record five Super Bowls as a quarterback. He appeared in all five of those Super Bowls in just a thirteen year span.
If the Patriot Way is the way the Broncos are striving towards, then I say bring it on. Some franchise is going to have to take the Patriots place once Tom Brady rides off into the sunset. Why not ours?
Congratulations to the 2014 #Patriots for doing what my #Broncos couldn't do in 2013. Go AFC!
— Tim Lynch (@TimLynch1978) February 2, 2015
Horse Tracks
Patriots show Broncos what "kicking and screaming" looks like - Denver Post
The New England Patriots' Super Bowl XLIX victory offered an example of a "kicking and screaming" effort that Broncos GM John Elway seeks every season.
Manning returns to Saturday Night Live | DenverBroncos.com
Peyton Manning will join more than 30 celebrities for SNL's 40th anniversary celebration.
Video: 5 Reasons Manning Should Return - Mile High Huddle
Peyton Manning should announce whether or not he will play in 2015 sometime this week. This video gives 5 convincing reasons he should return in 2015.
Mortensen: Manning Likely To Decide This Week - Mile High Huddle
Per Chris Mortensen of ESPN, Peyton Manning is likely to decide this week to return to the Broncos for his 18th NFL season and 4th in Denver.
Has Brady surpassed Montana as greatest QB ever? - NFL.com
Tom Brady and Peyton Manning are the inordinately dominant quarterbacks of the 21st century, competing annually for the right to challenge Joe Montana atop NFL history's quarterback hierarchy.
Brady's historic performance led the Patriots to Super Bowl 49 win | The MMQB
When Tom Brady and the Patriots broke the huddle with 12:10 remaining in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLIX, they were in a position that no team wants to be in.
Seahawks' Pete Carroll explains ill-fated call in Super Bowl XLIX - NFL.com
"I can take a punch," Pete Carroll texted me late Sunday night, nearly three hours after the conclusion of one of the greatest Super Bowls ever played -- and about 170 minutes removed from one of the most universally reviled play calls in the history of football.
Patriots beat Seahawks on Malcolm Butler interception | The MMQB
Football can take your breath away. In good ways and bad. What happened Sunday night under a mild winter Arizona sky will be debated from Kennebunkport to Kennewick for as long as the Sam Adams—or Mac & Jack’s—flows.
Malcolm Butler went from Super Bowl goat to greatness - SBNation.com
The Super Bowl was a test for the Patriots and their fans. Fortunately, Malcolm Butler was there.
The guy who made the Seahawks' dreadful play call blamed his WR - SBNation.com
Pretty much nobody was okay with the Seahawks' decision to throw the ball on the one-yard line with a few seconds left in the Super Bowl, a play that resulted in a game-ending interception.