Broncos 27, Seahawks 24: Plenty of game ball worthy performances in Week 1

The Denver Broncos took the win from the Seattle Seahawks late overcoming several offensive mistakes to secure a 27-24 victory. While the offense wasn’t pretty at times, they did move the ball at will and the defense sacked Russell Wilson a whooping six times in this game.

With the Orange Rush defense harassing and hitting Wilson all game long, it was only a matter of time for them to take over the game. Von Miller did just that with three second-half sacks and a forced fumble. Wilson looked hurried even when he wasn’t, which put the Broncos secondary in position to make a lot of plays.

Overall it was a great team win. One which saw the team rally after an offensive turnover rather than wilt under it.

Here are our game balls for this great Week 1 start!

Case Keenum

Case Keenum did have 3 interceptions. Those happened and were disappointing, but outside of those, Keenum was solid. He finished with 329 yards and 3 touchdowns. He threaded the needle for a pretty touchdown to Demaryius Thomas late in the game to make for his turnovers during the game. He needs to clean up his issues, but he showed he can put up points for the Broncos offense. - Scotty Payne

Von Miller

Von Miller was a force of nature in this game. He’s arguably the NFL’s best defensive player and showed the NFL that he can still absolutely ruin a team. He wrapped up the day with 3 sacks with 2 forced fumbles and an assist on a late game Chris Harris Jr. sack that he won’t get any statistical credit for. - Sadaraine

Demaryius Thomas

Demaryius Thomas finished second on the day behind Sanders who had 10 receptions for 135 yards and a touchdown, but Thomas was solid and was open a lot more than his final stat-line of 6 receptions for 63 yards and touchdown shows. He had several miscues early on with Keenum, with on resulting in an interception.

However, the reason DT gets a game ball from me was how he kept fighting through it and by late in the game he seemed to be making those Larry Fitzgerald like receptions that kept the sticks moving at the most critical of times, capping things off with a toe tapped touchdown reception to put the Broncos up for the final time. It’s good to see Thomas and Sanders feasting once more. - Tim Lynch

Emmanuel Sanders

Emmanuel Sanders is looking to be the offense’s version of Von Miller, aka the game wrecker. 10 catches for 135 yards and a TD is a significant tone to set. If Keenum can calm down and stay focused, I’m predicting Sanders shatters season records the way Von Miller is about to. Sanders is Pro Bowl bound. His new role in this offense fits him to a T. 1,300 Yard’s and 12+ TD’s are easily attainable. - Pete Baron

Justin Simmons

Seven months ago Justin Simmons set sail on something that was impossible for him last year — an All Pro season. Denver will ask and has asked all kinds of things of Simmons that would be considered out of scope for a safety such as playing nickle cornerback or dime backer, but on Simmons first stop of his All Pro tour he had four tackles, one pass defended and one interception on a day that saw him swap his position in and out, but found him near every play. - Ian Henson

Phillip Lindsay

Watching Phillip Lindsay was a treat for Coloradoans. He was the best option on the field for most of the game. His touchdown catch and run was a thing of beauty in the first quarter. He and Royce Freeman had the same rushing totals, but Lindsay was active all over the field. He even had a tackle on special teams. He will be a huge weapon this year, and if you are a Colorado native like myself, it will be a lot of fun to watch a local kid wearing a legends number being a great player. The rookies are good. Lindsay was great. - Adam Malnati

Adam Jones

One of the biggest concerns of Broncos Country, and holes on Denver’s roster was 3rd cornerback and a reliable return man. Enter Adam Jones who filled both of those slots.

Jones looked solid in the return game and had a nice return early in the game that was called back by a penalty.

But his play at corner was even more important. You didnt hear his name called much, because he was locking his man down. Von Miller can thank Jones for at least one of his sacks as Pacman took away Wilson’s target, causing him to pull it down.

For a major concern heading into the season to be a non-issue in this game is huge for the Denver secondary. Jones is an under the radar late pickup that will likely be one of Denver’s most clever moves this offseason. - Jeff Essary

John Elway

John Elway. For Draft Class 2018 and Free Agency 2018. So many contributors in today’s win. - Laurie Lattimore-Volkmann

Offensive Line

The biggest question for Denver’s offense this entire offseason was the guys upfront. After the first game of the season, that is no longer a question. The Broncos rushed for 146 yards on 32 carries. What showed me the offensive line is up to the task this season is when the team needed it most, Denver was able to run the ball. Freeman and Lindsay each had big runs that allowed the Broncos to flip field position and pin Seattle in its own end to all but end the game. Even better? The line allowed one sack. - Ian St. Clair

Who gets your game ball? Share in the comments section below.