BSN Breakdown: Denver Broncos’ most surprising stats, notable numbers from the 2015 season

The playoffs are upon us, and while we here in Broncos Country have our now-customary two weeks to prepare for the Orange & Blue’s first post-season tilt, it’s an opportune time to look back at some of the more surprising stats and notable numbers from the regular season.

Here are five figures and facts to digest:

– Despite the Broncos’ 12-4 finish, which tied for the third-best record in the league, they finished with a whopping 31 turnovers – bolstered by a league-most 23 interceptions tossed by Peyton Manning (17) and Brock Osweiler (six). Only the 4-12 Cowboys and 3-13 Titans, with 33 apiece, were more charitable. So despite the Broncos’ defense recording the seventh-most takeaways (27) in the league, Denver finished with a minus-4 turnover differential. And of the 15 teams who found themselves on the negative side of that all-important turnover table, only the Broncos wound up with a winning record.

 – Of course, we all know that five of those 31 giveaways came this past Sunday in the Broncos’ regular-season finale against the Chargers. And with the Denver D countering only with safety Shiloh Keo’s fourth-quarter interception, the Orange & Blue finished with a minus-4 turnover differential – sound familiar? – and yet still prevailed 27-20 to put the wraps on their fifth-straight AFC West title and the conference’s top seed.

So how rare is that? Try 3.6-percent territory. Over the last 10 regular seasons, 224 teams have finished a game with a minus-4 or worse turnover margin and only eight – with the latest being the Broncos in Week 17 of the 2015 season – went on to win the game.

– Sunday’s win was the Broncos’ league-most ninth victory in 12 games this season decided by seven points or fewer. If that sounds like a lot of close games, it is –especially compared with Denver teams of recent seasons. In fact, in the previous three Broncos’ seasons, the Orange & Blue only played in a combined 13 games decided by a touchdown or less, winning seven of those contests.

 – All those close games resulted in only a plus-59 point differential for the Broncos this season, which was the 10th-largest in the league and only the ninth best among the 12 playoff qualifiers. Factor in the team’s 12 wins, and the accomplishment again shifts back into historically-rare territory.

Since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger, the 2015 Broncos are only the third team to finish a regular season with 12 or more wins and a point differential of 60 points or fewer. The others? The 12-4 Lions of 1991 (plus-44 differential) and the 12-4 Raiders of 1985 (plus-46).

Neither made it the Super Bowl with the Raiders getting upended by the Patriots in the divisional round and the Lions falling to the eventual Super Bowl-champion Redskins in the NFC Championship Game.

– Finally, the 2015 Broncos’ season featured a decided departure from recent campaigns in terms of their winning formula. During the first three seasons of the Manning Era (2012-14), the franchise only won three of 13 games when starting QB – Manning, of course, in all 13 instances –  failed to post a passer rating of 90 or better.

Conversely, the Broncos were 37-3 when he hit 90 or better. This season, though, the Broncos came to rely on a lot less on their quarterback for success, winning eight of the 12 games when the starting QB finished with a passer rating below 90. They still were a perfect 4-0 when the rating climbed above 90, but you get the picture: This 12-win season was far from a one-man production.