The NFL made Broncos fans feel a ton better on Sunday
“Sunday was brighter. Aside from being as sunny and warm as a December day can be, it was one on which the rest of the NFL sent the message that everything was going to be okay – football wise, anyhow.”
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Friday was just a miserable day in Broncos Country. Everybody woke up hung over from a dismal Denver loss and the reality that their favorite team was no longer in control of its own fate. Then things got worse. Around noon, a horrible thing happened in Littleton that made being upset over football game seem really silly. So we forgot about the Broncos for awhile.
Sunday was brighter. Aside from being as sunny and warm as a December day can be, it was one on which the rest of the NFL sent the message that everything was going to be okay – football wise, anyhow.
The Patriots lost. That was the most important thing. Rather than allowing us to fret for weeks that our Broncos may be traveling to the Boston area in the playoffs, the Miami Dolphins handed us that first seed right back, staving off what seemed like an inevitable Tom Brady comeback to secure a four-point victory at home over the evil empire.
Other squads sent the message that “it’s not just you” by losing in unlikely ways with far more on the line than the Broncos had.
That loss to the Chargers stung but not like it must have hurt the Eagles to get blown out by the hapless Vikings. Philadelphia, playing for its post-season life, looked helpless against Matt Cassell and Minnesota’s third-string running back who combined to plop 48 points on the scoreboard, sending the Eagles back to the drawing board.
The Cowboys left the NFC East door open for those Eagles, though, when they let a 26-3 halftime lead get away at their place against the Aaron Rodgers-less Packers. Dallas was at home with a chance to tie Philly at 8-6 and control their own destiny in division and they failed spectacularly.
The mighty New Orleans Saints failed to stave off an enemy, too. With a victory over the Saint Louis Rams, a five-win team, NOLA could have maintained a one-win advantage over the white-hot Carolina Panthers at 11-3. Instead they looked awful on the road against the Rams and got soundly beaten. Now the Panthers and the Saints are tied at 10-4 with an all-important game yet to play between them.
On Sunday night the Cincinnati Bengals had an opportunity to maintain a two-game lead in the AFC North, also against a five-win team – the Steelers. Instead they went to Pittsburgh and got boat-raced on national TV, allowing the Ravens to creep within a game of the division lead. The Ravens have already beaten the Bengals once and will have another shot at them on December 29.
On Monday night the Detroit Lions really blew their chance. By losing to the Ravens at home they slid from first place in their division all the way to third behind the 8-6 Bears and the 7-7-1 Packers. Detroit absolutely, positively had to have a win and instead they failed to show up. Just like the Bengals, they choked in front of a national television audience and now they might not even make the playoffs even though all three of their division-mates spent a good portion of the year starting backup quarterbacks.
The phrase “any given Sunday” certainly was validated across the NFL this weekend.
As many teams as could have greatly improved their lots with victories and didn’t should make Broncos fans feel a whole lot better about what happened to their team on Thursday night. San Diego came in here desperately clinging to life and out-battled the Broncos in what was essentially their Super Bowl. And as solidly as they played on both sides of the ball they only beat Denver by seven points.
At least the Broncos still hold the cards. They could go into Houston or Oakland and lose another game but they probably won’t – and if they don’t then they’ll get to rest up for a week when they playoffs start and host every game thereafter – at least until the Super Bowl.
Everybody felt bad on Friday. But the NFL made Broncos fans feel a ton better on Sunday and Monday. And, even though we have been reminded in a tragic way that football doesn’t really matter all that much in the grand scheme of things, it’s not at all silly to enjoy it.
