PHILADELPHIA -- An 18-point fourth quarter against the reigning Super Bowl champions, a 2-point conversion for the win, and a signature effort Broncos coach Sean Payton believed shows everyone -- including his own players -- what kind of team he has. It was all there Sunday in Denver's 21-17 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field.
The Broncos trailed 17-3 early in the fourth quarter but rallied to move to 3-2 ahead of their game next weekend against the winless New York Jets in London.
"When you play someone like that, you're going to get punched, and it's not going to be easy, but we kept fighting,'' Payton said of the Eagles.
"I think they were confident coming in. I asked [the Denver players] afterwards: 'Who are you afraid of?'''
No play signified that no-fear mind frame more than Payton's decision to attempt a 2-point conversion after an 11-yard Bo Nix-to-Evan Engram touchdown pass narrowed the Eagles' lead to 17-16 with seven minutes, 36 seconds to play. Payton didn't hesitate after Engram broke a tackle and dived across the goal line for the score. The offense stayed on the field and Nix had the playcall -- one Payton said he had saved for just such an opportunity -- almost immediately.
"We came here to win a game,'' Payton said. "And I had two or three calls that I loved. ... We got to a call I had a lot of confidence in. And the guys executed, and it was perfect. We had like 7½ minutes left [in the game]. ... We were [saying], 'Let's do that, and let's keep being aggressive.' You always get a chance to see where you're at [against a top team]. We talked a lot about it.''
Added Nix: "I wasn't surprised, but next thing I knew he was giving me the hash, giving me the call. We had one play to get the job done. ... Trust in his players, and we got the job done.''
Payton said the Broncos "knew'' in that situation the Eagles would match cornerback Quinyon Mitchell on Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton on the left side of the formation. That put wide receiver Troy Franklin in single coverage on the right against Kelee Ringo, who had replaced a healthy Adoree' Jackson in the Eagles' lineup Sunday.
Franklin created separation on the release and jab-stepped toward the front corner of the end zone, and Nix rolled out to put the ball on target. The conversion gave the Broncos an 18-17 lead, and they added a 36-yard field goal from Wil Lutz on their next possession.
"We knew [Mitchell] was traveling with Courtland there, and Troy has got a really, really good first step,'' Payton said. "When you watch the route, one jab and [Franklin] was fantastic on it. It was a good throw, a throw you've got to make on the run.''
Added Engram: "That's how we roll. We definitely believed we're going to get it.''
It was the Broncos' first road win this season, and their first against a team that currently has a winning record.
"I'm telling you, this team is full of winners," offensive tackle Garett Bolles said. "Gritty, slimy guys that are just going to punch you in the mouth and just never quit.''
Nix went 9-of-10 for 127 of his 242 passing yards in the game in fourth quarter. He was also 4-of-4 for 82 yards on throws of at least 10 yards in the fourth quarter after he had been 1-of-10 on throws of at least 10 yards in the first three quarters, per ESPN Research.
"This week, everybody just coming up asking questions [such as], 'Is this a measuring stick game?' and blah, blah, blah,'' Broncos outside linebacker Nik Bonitto said. "I never felt like it was that. I felt like we knew what kind of team we were. We're a good team, we have aspirations. We knew we weren't coming here to be close and lose a game. We were coming here to win.''
Added Payton: "I told the team, 'You're going to forget the money, the car, but you're not going to forget just these moments.
"Ultimately, this is what you do it for: You're making memories.''