Kiszla: Broncos coming home undefeated to city aching to fall in love again with its NFL team. “Buckle yourself down,” coach Vic Fangio says.

JACKSONVILLE — Is your Broncomania bushed down by decision and long-suppressed wrong your aching heart? Go up and fto it out. It’s harmless again to person a crush connected the orange.

While COVID-19 inactive lurks successful each facet of our lives, nary longer does the pandemic specify us. For the archetypal clip since the coronavirus shook america to the core, much than 75,000 fans volition basal and roar arsenic the undefeated Broncos instrumentality the tract adjacent play for a home-opener successful a stadium filled to the brim with anticipation and joy.

“I expect an electrical stadium. So buckle yourself down. That stadium is going to beryllium live and well,” Broncos manager Vic Fangio said Sunday, aft Denver’s 23-13 thumping of Jacksonville.

The champion infinitesimal of this triumph was aft astir of the assemblage astatine TIAA Bank Field had already headed to the exits. Unable to hug his parent owed to COVID information protocols Broncos backmost Teddy Bridgewater tossed a shot to Rose Murphy. It was his most-rewarding completion of the afternoon.

“I was capable to tally implicit to my Mom and flip her the shot aft the game. I couldn’t interaction her oregon anything. It’s a immense sacrifice we marque daily,” said Bridgewater, who decided against buying 60 tickets for friends and household successful Florida retired of an abundance of caution against the coronavirus.

The enslaved betwixt Bridgewater and his parent is simply a communicative well-loved and fondly told.

Teddy wanted to discontinue shot astatine property 14, wanting lone to instrumentality attraction of his ma aft she was diagnosed with cancer. Rose would perceive nary of it, telling him to play connected portion she fought the disease.

When a gruesome genu wounded successful 2016 threatened not lone his NFL vocation but imaginable amputation of his near leg, Teddy’s comeback began with the spot gained by watching Rose bushed cancer.

“It’s decidedly a grind inactive going to enactment during the pandemic,” Bridgewater said, “because you don’t privation to beryllium the feline (that risks vulnerability to COVID), you don’t privation to beryllium selfish and bring thing wrong the locker room.”

The dangers of a pandemic that has killed astir 700,000 Americans haven’t disappeared. That’s wherefore I privation the Broncos would measurement up and necessitate impervious of vaccination earlier allowing immoderate instrumentality successful their stadium for the location opener against the New York Jets. But the squad volition alternatively travel section wellness guidelines and promote unvaccinated patrons to deterioration a mask.

During the darkest days of COVID-19 successful 2020, shot was a invited distraction successful Broncos Country. But it ne'er felt thing similar a party. A twelvemonth ago, wellness restrictions allowed fans done the gates of Empower Field lone 4 times. Attendance was constricted to nary much than 5,341. Although their cheers were spirited, they rang hollow successful a stadium that felt similar a shade town.

This Broncos squad that 75,000 beardown volition enthusiastically greet adjacent week is not flamboyant, but afloat committed to what it does best. Denver is methodical connected offense, present having controlled the shot an mean of 37 minutes successful 2 victories. Bridgewater has completed 77% of 70 walk attempts, not a azygous 1 resulting successful an interception. With linebacker Von Miller backmost from wounded and showing Vonster tendencies, the defence has shown hints it could beryllium among the 5 stingiest successful the league.

The turning constituent of this crippled was ushered successful by a hard rainfall during the last infinitesimal of the archetypal half, arsenic Denver clung to a 10-7 lead. With a accidental for Jacksonville to tie, Josh Lambo alternatively hooked a field-goal effort from 48 yards wide left.

Whatever home-field vantage that was successful this stadium had been reduced to puddles of mud. And erstwhile the Broncos began the 3rd 4th with a agelong touchdown drive, capped by a 14-yard walk from Bridgewater to choky extremity Noah Fant, the Jaguars felt that aforesaid creeping hopelessness Denver players person battled acold excessively often during a five-year playoff drought.

I’ve got thing against Jacksonville. But with the Florida Gators residing successful a adjacent swamp, this municipality has ne'er seemed peculiarly enamored with NFL football. If London calls the Jaguars, they should not lone answer, but battalion their bags and leave.

A 2-0 commencement does not warrant thing but Mile High volition rocking for the home-opener.

“I don’t adjacent retrieve the past clip we were 2-0,” Miller said. “We privation to support pushing.”

Should the Broncos spell 3-0 with a triumph against the woebegone Jets, past possibly we’ve truly got thing to speech about. Since 1990, astir 3 retired of 4 (74.2%) of the 155 NFL teams that didn’t suffer done 3 weeks person earned a playoff bid.

The Broncos are coming location to a metropolis that has been aching to autumn successful emotion again with its NFL team.

“I can’t hold to get there,” Fangio said. “But I’m going to calm myself down and enactment successful a good, coagulated week of work.”