On Sunday night, the Denver Broncos dispatched of Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski and the New England Patriots with a thrilling, 30-24 overtime win. Okay; perhaps “dispatched of” is a bit of an overstatement. The Broncos handed the previously unbeaten Patriots their first loss of the 2015 season thanks to late-game heroics on both sides of the ball.
No play was bigger in deciding the outcome than Darian Stewart‘s hit on Rob Gronkowski late in the fourth quarter. The shot to the legs of the outstretched Gronkowski sidelined the tight end for the remainder of the game, including overtime. Brady said after the game the hit was clean (much to the chagrin of New Englanders everywhere), but it’s impact was monumental. Without Gronk, the Patriots tied the game with a long field goal on their final possession (a touchdown would have won the game), but they went three-and-out in their first possession of overtime. C.J. Anderson sealed the Pats’ fate on the Broncos’ first drive in the extra frame.
Prior to exiting the game, Gronkowski had pulled down six receptions for 88 yards and a touchdown. This year, Gronkowski ranks second among all tight ends in touchdowns scored and tops for receiving yards. Nullifying New England’s biggest offensive weapon in the waning moments of the game was no doubt critical to Denver’s upset win.
At 9-2, Denver needs to run the table through the final five games and get some help if they are to catch the 10-1 Patriots and secure home-field advantage in the playoffs. In their remaining five games, Denver faces similar offensive threats, some in the form of a quarterback-tight end combo, others of the more traditional quarterback-wide receiver variety. Stopping those combinations will be paramount to a clean finish to the regular season.
In this week’s “Power Rankings,” we examine the top remaining offensive threats that could derail a 5-0 finish.
