The Denver Broncos defeated the New York Jets in London, but it wasn’t pretty. The Broncos narrowly emerged victorious 13-11, amid a litany of self-inflicted wounds.
If style points mattered in the NFL, the Broncos’ seeding in the AFC would take a hit. But this isn’t college football.
All that truly matters are the standings, just ask Broncos rush linebacker Nik Bonitto.
“The most important thing was coming here and getting the win. It didn’t matter how it looked like, in my opinion,” Bonitto said post-game. I felt like as long as we got the win, that was the important thing.”
When the NFL is doing the math and factoring which teams make the playoffs at season’s end, there are no style points. It’s about wins and losses, and in the event of a tie, points scored, and a team’s record in the division, conference, and against common opponents.
There will be questions over how the sausage got made this week, but the Broncos’ goal was to head home from their two-week road trip at 4-2. Mission accomplished.
“They kind of approached the message this week. Starting 4-2 is a big deal,” Bonitto said of his coaches’ message. “Something we haven’t done since I’ve been here. It’s pretty special to be at this point right now. We got to keep getting better, keep growing every week.”
Bonitto and his defensive brethren are certainly doing their part. The Broncos held the Jets to just nine points (on offense), sacking Justin Fields nine times. Jonathon Cooper led the team with two sacks.
The Jets had -10 net passing yards on the day because of the Broncos’ relentless pass rush. The Jets were also held to just 2-of-15 (13%) on third down.
Bonitto’s fingerprints were on two sacks, both of which he split with Broncos defensive lineman Zach Allen. Bonitto now has eight sacks on the season, leading the NFL.
Bonitto’s message about style points may have been intended to the anxious throngs of Broncos Country who have been confused and confounded by the mixed messages this team has sent by upsetting the World Champions in Philadelphia and barely holding on to knock off the winless Jets. But he was absolutely thrilled by the fan turn-out at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Remember, even though this was an NFL International Game, it counts as a home game for the Jets. Tell that to the masses of Orange and Blue in attendance on Sunday.
“Obviously, shout out to our fans. It was amazing to see how much orange there was out there today,” Bonitto said. “Just in general, everybody that was able to come out today and bring this game to another place and make it something internal around the world was pretty cool to see… it was pretty dope.”
The Broncos will host the 2-4 New York Giants at home next Sunday. The last rookie quarterback to face the Broncos was not only handed a loss, but was sacked six times and sent home with 62 net passing yards.
Time will tell whether New York’s Jaxson Dart’s fate vs. the Broncos will mirror that of Tennessee’s Cam Ward. But expect Bonitto to do his part to welcome Dart to the joy of facing the Broncos’ defense at Mile High.
