Cheers…

to Nick Foles for giving Broncos fans a sense of hope heading into the AFC Championship Game. The 11-year veteran last played in 2022, but his most famous moment was leading the Philadelphia Eagles to a win over Tom Brady and the Patriots in Super Bowl 52 after replacing an injured Carson Wentz late in the regular season. Foles threw for 373 yards and three touchdowns in the win over New England in one of the more memorable performances in Super Bowl history. The only difference is that Foles took over in December when Wentz tore his ACL in a game against the Rams and had three full regular-season games (and a bye to start the postseason) before his first playoff appearance that season. Stidham hasn’t thrown a pass in a game since he completed 16-of-23 passes for 240 yards and two touchdowns against the Cardinals in the preseason. He appeared in one game in the regular season, taking a knee at the end of the win over the Cowboys. Now, he will make the biggest start of his life with a spot in the Super Bowl on the line.

Boo …

to the cruel, cruel injury gods, once again. Bo Nix did everything he needed to in the Broncos’ dramatic, 33-30 overtime win over the Bills on Saturday. He completed 26-of-46 passes for 279 yards and three touchdowns with just one interception. His touchdown pass to Marvin Mims near the end of regulation was arguably the biggest of his career to date and came at a time when everyone inside Mile High was probably getting Apple Watch alerts that their heart rate was off the charts. He played well enough to give his team its first home AFC Championship Game in 10 years, and now he won’t get to play in it.

Cheers …

to Devon Key for backing up his All-Pro honor. The reserve safety has been a special teams ace all season and was rewarded for it this week and he showed up once again in that regard, making a big tackle on a kickoff return. But the biggest play he made was his fumble recovery at the end of the first half that set up Wil Lutz’s field goal that gave Denver a 10-point cushion going into the locker room — a field goal that proved pivotal in a three-point win that needed overtime. 

Boo … 

to the Broncos run defense. If there’s one thing to criticize Denver for after such a huge win, it’s that there was a lot of luck involved from a defensive perspective. Of course, some of the interceptions were great plays by the Broncos secondary, but it’s not often you recover three out of five fumbles in a big playoff game. Bills running back James Cook and quarterback Josh Allen combined for 183 rushing yards on 36 carries, good for over five yards per attempt. That duo was gashing the Denver defense at times and it looked like it might cost the Broncos the game.