Denver Broncos fans are beginning to fall in love with their new, young quarterback Brock Osweiler. And, for the fourth-year quarterback, the feeling is mutual.
On Sunday afternoon in San Diego, Broncos Country was representing. While it’s difficult to say for sure, it looked like half or even more of the stadium was full of Broncos faithful in their predominantly orange jerseys.
Homefield advantage is key in football, giving the team on the gridiron the crowd noise on defense. It was heard all day long when the Broncos made big plays, and that noise wasn’t lost on Osweiler.
“Oh my gosh, it was unbelievable how much orange there was,” Osweiler said in his postgame press conference. “It’s just a testament that we truly do have the best fans in the world. Denver Bronco fans are very special and it’s amazing how much orange was in the stadium today. They have no idea how much that means to us.”
Of course, Denver Broncos fans have sold out every game at Mile High Stadium and New Mile High since 1970, making them the only team to have every NFL home game a sellout. And while Broncos fans may not travel as well as Green Bay Packers or Pittsburgh Steelers teams, they really showed out on Sunday.
“Absolutely,” Osweiler said of the large number of fans and if they affect the road team. “When you run out of the tunnel and half the stadium if not more is orange that gets you excited. You want to play well for your fans whether that’s on home or on the road. To get that kind of support on the road in San Diego really means a lot to this football team.”
Denver took that homefield-like support and rolled with it.
Osweiler led the offense down the field for a touchdown on his first drive, connecting with Demaryius Thomas for the three-yard touchdown. That gave the Broncos the 7-0 lead. Danny Trevathan‘s pick-six, followed by cheers by the Broncos, on the next Chargers drive gave Denver the 14-0 lead and they rode that momentum to the 17-3 victory.
The offense wasn’t flawless, but it was effective enough to help manufacture a road win with the dominant defense. Osweiler passed for 166 yards on 16-26 passing with one touchdown and one interception while Ronnie Hillman ran for 56 yards on 19 carries.
Meanwhile, the Denver defense was demonstrative. They sacked Philip Rivers four times and picked him off once, and they forced four fumbles, recovering two of them.
Yes, Broncos fans have had a lot to cheer about this season. They started off 7-0, knocking off the then-unbeaten Green Bay Packers. Then, after two losses and losing Peyton Manning, the Broncos handed the rival New England Patriots their first loss of the season before beating the Chargers tonight.
Denver, in all likelihood, will win the AFC West for the fifth straight time and with the win extended their divisional road winning streak NFL record to 15 games tonight.
