Like Wild Card Weekend, its postseason predecessor, Divisional Weekend typically produces exciting, gritty, and iconic performances. When a mere eight teams remain in the NFL playoffs, all bets truly are off. However, unlike Wild-Card Weekend, Divisional Weekend has mostly proven fruitful for the Denver Broncos. The Broncos have an extensive collection of memorable games this weekend. With that said, it is January 14th, 2006’s conference semifinal that stands out most in the team’s storied history as the best Denver Broncos Divisional playoff game.
The Best Denver Broncos Divisional Playoff Game: 2006 Divisional
Throughout the 61 years of Denver Broncos history, the team competed in twice as many Divisional games as they did games on Wild-Card Weekend. They have won over 62 percent of these appearances. Furthermore, six of these 16 games have come in the 21st century, though the team’s 3-3 record in these games leaves quite a bit to be desired. They outscored their 16 Divisional Round opponents by 30, advancing to the AFC Conference Championship 10 times. This is a stark contrast to their 91-point deficit in scoring differential in their Wild-Card appearances.
The 2005 New England Patriots had a top-ten offense and a middling defense, earning a 10-6 record and winning the AFC East for the fourth time in five seasons. Motivations were high for New England, who sought the first ‘threepeat’ in NFL history. A hungry 13-3 Broncos team stood on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage. They had even already defeated these same Patriots during the regular season.
Setting the Stage
Quarterback Jake Plummer arrived in Denver in the off-season preceding the 2003 season to play for head coach Mike Shanahan. By the time the Broncos reached the playoffs for their 2005-2006 campaign, Plummer had earned two more wins in 43 games with Denver than he had in 82 with the Arizona Cardinals. When he retired after ceding five games to rookie quarterback Jay Cutler in the 2006 season, Plummer finished with nine more wins than his time in Arizona.
Despite his individual numbers representing a regression from his impressive 2004 season, Plummer led his team to three more wins in 2005, securing the second seed, behind only Peyton Manning’s Indianapolis Colts. Winning five of their six division matchups and going undefeated at home, the Broncos won the AFC West for the first time since John Elway retired following their Super Bowl win-repeating season in 1998.
The Best Denver Broncos Divisional Playoff Game in History
Some in Broncos Country might remember the 2005 campaign as the rookie season of Darrent Williams. That said, the magnitude of their 27-13 victory over New England in the best Denver Broncos Divisional playoff game in history arguably overshadows this fact. Riding the momentum of two consecutive Super Bowl victories and a 45-10 record (including playoffs) since the beginning of the 2003-2004 season, the Patriots had yet to lose a postseason game with the Bill Belichick at head coach and Tom Brady at quarterback. In fact, they outscored opposing teams 186 to 111 in their seven postseason appearances together. They averaged nearly an 11-point margin of victory in these seven games.
Denver, however, was committed to returning to the rarefied air of the Super Bowl for the first time this century. The game saw a 0-0 deadlock until just before the two-minute warning in the first half, when Adam Vinatieri drew first blood with a 40-yard field goal. Denver did not take this well and quickly scored twice to secure a 10-3 lead at the half.
The Second Half
Late in the third quarter, Denver led 10-6. The Patriots executed a lengthy drive from their own 22, reaching third down and goal five yards from Denver’s end zone. Lining up in 11 personnel with halfback Kevin Faulk to Brady’s right in the backfield and tight end Benjamin Watson offset from the left tackle.
Denver crowded the line of scrimmage to conceal their intentions, and when Brady received the snap at the 10, Denver cornerback Nick Ferguson broke through the A gap and forced Brady to roll right out of the collapsing pocket while retreating. Moments before Ferguson would have connected with the future Hall of Famer on a hit, Brady tossed the ball up toward wide receiver Troy Brown.
What happened next was history.
A Moment To Remember
Champ Bailey stepped in front of the pass a yard or so into the end zone, snatching it out of Brown’s reach with green ahead of him. Sprinting out of the end zone, the arguable best man-to-man corner in history darted up the left sideline, breaking free from a Kevin Faulk tackling effort. He then picked up two lead blockers in the form of Nick Ferguson and defensive tackle Gerard Warren.
Despite the presence of these two defenders, Bailey outran these blocks. He was absolutely splattered out of bounds one yard from the opposite end zone after one of the most memorable individual efforts in NFL history from Benjamin Watson. The Broncos scored on the ensuing play when Mike Anderson to take a 17-6 lead. New England subsequently failed to cut Denver’s lead any closer than 11 for the remainder of the game.
Denver went on to score another touchdown before New England scored late in the final frame to cut an 18-point deficit back to 11. It was only after an additional field goal from Jason Elam that the game mercifully ended for New England, 27-13.
Ripple Effect in New England
This incredible bright spot in franchise history is particularly memorable for a multitude of reasons. To begin with, the Broncos were able to hand Brady and Belichick their first playoff loss together. This came after seven consecutive postseason victories and two Super Bowl rings. In doing so, Denver prevented the first-ever ‘threepeat’ Super Bowl Champion. This interestingly also began a drought of back-to-back champions that lasts to this day.
Tom Brady went on to hold a losing record against Denver. His record against Denver remained below .500 until Peyton Manning retired, opening the window for three consecutive wins against them. If one excludes his win as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Brady owns a losing record (8-9) against one team and one team only: the Denver Broncos.
Brady’s frustrating defeat at the hands of the Broncos unleashed a quarterback who won 28 games over the next two seasons. Through those two seasons, Brady threw for 74 touchdowns. His 20 postseason wins in New England after this loss are more than any other quarterback has accrued in an entire career of postseason appearances.
Aftermath of the Best Denver Broncos Divisional Playoff Game in History
For Denver, the legacy of this game is widespread. Champ Bailey arguably went on to have the greatest season for a cornerback in history in 2006. A mediocre Plummer performance in this game and a loss in the following week’s playoff game inspired Mike Shanahan to draft Jay Cutler that off-season. That, in turn, prompted Plummer’s retirement after the 2006 campaign. Shanahan went on to finish a combined 24-24 in his next three seasons with Denver. Sadly, these were the final three seasons of his career with the team.
Unfortunately for Broncos Country, the team failed to make playoffs again until the 2011 season and the Mile High Magic of the best Denver Broncos Wild-Card game in history. The team has mostly failed to find the consistency, hope, or production seen in the 2005 Broncos since the 2005 Broncos.
Many consider the failure to advance to Super Bowl XL to be a serious stain on the legacy of this season and the best Denver Broncos Divisional playoff game ever. Nonetheless, it is one of the most memorable moments in franchise history. For many, this game was seminal in developing their fandom for the Broncos. It also offered a strong illustration that Tom Brady is, in fact, human.
Legacy and the Future
Denver is not close to returning to the Divisional Round of the NFL playoffs. While they appear poised to make a jump in 2021, their performances as a team the last five years have been inadequate. In fact, it is often quite frustrating for the team and its fans alike. There is a lot of work to be done if they hope to eventually reunite with the conference semifinals. Their storied history proves they will continue to fight to get back to the rarefied air of a Super Bowl. Naturally, this means there will be a number of Divisional Round appearances in the future.
There is often no love lost for the New England Patriots or Tom Brady in Broncos Country. Handing them their first combined playoff loss without Elway or Manning under center was a remarkable feat. Unsurprisingly, it is one Broncos fans are not soon to forget. While there is a number of viable options for the best Denver Broncos Divisional game in history, this one deserves recognition. This defeat of Brady and New England stands out from the rest in terms of entertainment, legacy, and memorability. Its influences on and off the field are similarly as widespread as its legacy.
The Last Word
Not seeing the boys in orange and blue on Divisional Weekend is almost completely insufferable for Broncos Country. Watching a division rival like the Kansas City Chiefs playing only makes it worse. Unfortunately, all Broncos fans can do right now is look back fondly on one of their ten Divisional Round wins. If there is any particular game one should focus on most, it should be the best Denver Broncos Divisional game in history: their 27-13 win over New England.
Like Brady’s first playoff loss was prior to this game, another Divisional Round victory for Denver is inevitable. Thankfully, 2021 will offer a serious litmus test for how soon this inevitability will come to fruition.
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Embed from Getty Images
