Stud No. 2 – C.J. Anderson
Forget about his late, fourth-quarter fumble. Today you’ll see critics across television and hear them on the radio giving C.J. Anderson praise followed by “but you gotta hang on to that ball.” The chorus will be the same and it will echo across every corner of the Denver and NFL media. Forget about it.
That fumble was Anderson‘s first of the year, and while it came at an inopportune time, it gave the defense a chance to redeem itself after last week’s monumental collapse.
Anderson was hurt badly on the play, being listed as questionable to return, but there he was on the very next drive, refusing to let that play be his last. On the day he ran for 73 yards on nine carries, ripping off an astounding 39-yard touchdown run to give the Broncos the lead in the fourth quarter.
The Denver defense considers itself the stewards of this football team, and so following a game-tying field drive by the Bengals, Anderson’s lost fumble set up the defense to make another stop with the game hanging in the balance. They did just that, getting the Broncos the ball back with 1:40 to play and needing just a field goal to win. Sadly, our No. 1 “Dud” pressed the game into overtime, but it was the statement stop the Denver defense wanted badly to make. They can thank Anderson and his fumble for putting them in that position.
