Value in the Broncos winning

Before you do anything else - or while you’re watching the Chiefs-Rams game and hoping the Rams wallop them - treat yourself to this four-minute highlight recap of Dave Logan calling the victory yesterday:

“...A big hole for Phillip Lindsay, 30-25-20, it’s a foot race, here we go! 10, 5, HOUSE CALL PHILLIP LINDSAY! 41 yards for the rookie out of the University of Colorado!”

And then jump to the 37-minute mark to hear a short but entertaining tirade from Andrew Mason about fans who were actually upset by the Broncos’ win yesterday (you know who you are!)

“They call themselves Broncos fan and they were unhappy. They were rooting for the team to lose. ...If you call yourself a Broncos fan and you wanted your team to lose yesterday, YOU ARE NOT A BRONCOS FAN! Period.”

While I am not here to judge your fandom (though that won’t stop me anyway - hahaha), Mase made the best point about what was truly exciting - and necessary - about the Broncos’ win on Sunday.

It wasn’t just for keeping hopes alive for a (very) outside chance at the playoffs, or for the veterans who have known championship Broncos culture; it was for the young guys who need to learn it.

“This Broncos team is not likely going to the playoffs this year, but there is value in winning games,” Mason said. “You have an awful lot of young players on this team - Bradley Chubb, Courtland Sutton, Phillip Lindsay - talented guys who are foundational players for the future and that’s the kind of game that teaches them how to win at this level.”

He couldn’t be more right.

The three hosts elaborated on the point that while the Broncos are no championship team this year, they are not without talent (in the midst of trashing Keenan Allen’s comment yesterday that the Broncos suck to which Steve Atwater had the best retort - “Who have [the Chargers] beaten? You haven’t even beaten any top-tier teams!”)

But the 3-6 Broncos bested a 7-2 Chargers, snagging the ‘W’ against a division rival that had nearly 500 yards of total offense and had the ball for 37 minutes.

So while the Broncos may not be good enough to overcome and win when they make costly mistakes - as they have done several games this season with penalties or bad decisions/bad plays at crucial moments - they are good enough to beat any other team that makes those mistakes.

Just as the Chargers did yesterday.

“Sometimes it is about being able to capitalize on an opponent’s mistake or being able to maximize a tactical gambit like a fake punt ... that’s the kind of thing you need to do to win a game,” Mason said. “Seize the moment.”

Carpe diem, my friends, carpe diem.