When Brandon Marshall looks at his right index finger, it provides a reminder.
It is bent but points directly to one of the former linebacker’s favorite NFL memories.
It came during the final plays against Kansas City on Sept. 17, 2015. The Broncos had tied the score with 36 seconds remaining, leaving them prepared for overtime.
For all the importance of Peyton Manning stiff-arming Father Time, of receiver Demaryius Thomas’ eye-widening performance, it was Marshall who made this game memorable with a single punch.
On first-and-10 from the 20-yard line, the Chiefs eschewed taking a knee as quarterback Alex Smith ran a draw play, handing off to Jamaal Charles. The play seemed unnecessary — “I forgot how little time was on the clock. Yeah, that was a really bad decision,” Marshall recalled with a laugh — and provided an opportunity. Safety Darian Stewart bolted at Charles, clubbing him in the shoulder and head, forcing him to fall off balance.
Marshall dived into the running back, his knee roughly two inches above the ground, unlodging the football with his finger. It might as well have been a middle one to the stunned Arrowhead Stadium crowd. Cornerback Bradley Roby scooped up the ball and raced 21 yards for the game-winning score of a 31-24 victory.
Nine years later, Marshall returns to that snapshot with a smile and a grimace.
“I didn’t see Roby running because my body was reacting to my dislocated finger going in the wrong direction,” Marshall said. “I was hurting, then I looked up and saw everyone heading for the end zone. I had no idea what happened. And now I can never forget it.”
Broncos Country feels the same way. That Thursday night classic represents the last time the Broncos won in Kansas City. As Denver aims to break an eight-game road losing skid against its rival, returning to this moment, talking to players involved, provides comfort and inspiration that perhaps a Chiefs’ win Sunday is not inevitable.
“The streak is inexcusable. The Chiefs have become the bar on what you have to do to win,” right tackle Ryan Harris said. “For one reason or another, the Broncos haven’t gotten it done since we did. It’s disappointing. But this is a new year.”
There are lessons to be gleaned from what unfurled in 2015, centering on aggression, attitude and an opportunistic defense.
Quarterback Bo Nix injects confidence into the current team. And the Broncos defense showed the blueprint to getting into Patrick Mahomes’ head last October.
It will take clean execution (no turnovers), standouts making plays (looking at you Pat Surtain II) and somebody unexpectedly elevating their game, like Marshall.
In fairness, the 2015 Broncos were more like the 2024 Chiefs, winning because of future Hall of Famers and stars as much as anything else.
The list starts with Manning. At age 39, he wandered into a muggy sea of red, tomahawk chop chants alternating with Black Sabbath music to create a cacophony of noise.
“It was the loudest place I ever played,” Marshall said. “It was a championship atmosphere.”
The criticism of his offensive line and arm all summer seemed accurate when Manning threw a pick-six in back-to-back games — rookie Marcus Peters jumped the route on Thomas — for the first time in his career. The Broncos trailed 14-0. And yet, they saw no reason to panic.
“We started off terrible. It was so loud. I remember (Chiefs safety) Eric Berry was playing his first home game in his return from cancer. There was just a lot going against us,” running back C.J. Anderson said. “And the second play, I was so lost in the moment I forgot the audible and screwed up. But we knew we would settle down, that Peyton would turn into Peyton.”
It required adjustments. While coach Gary Kubiak’s fatherly discipline was the perfect antidote after John Fox, his offense was not. Manning was not comfortable under center.
Facing a double-figure deficit, Manning reverted to the shotgun to end his 26-drive streak without a touchdown dating to the preseason. He leaned on vertical routes, finding Emmanuel Sanders for a score.
Then cornerback Aqib Talib delivered his latest pivotal interception, baiting Smith on an outside route to Jeremy Maclin. It set up a 1-yard jump pass touchdown to tight end Virgil Green. The Broncos were back in business.
“We felt like we could win every game. We had playmakers on offense and defense,” cornerback Chris Harris Jr. said. “Our mindset on defense was to score. You saw it in our secondary. Or just get it right back to Peyton. He might have struggled, but he was still Peyton.”
Nix was 14 years old when the Broncos last won in Kansas City. His attitude about this game and appreciation for its history are refreshing. He seemed to channel Manning this week when he said playing keep away from Mahomes is not the key.
“We have to score points against a team like this and get a lead because in one-score games they have been known to come back,” said Nix, understanding field goals are not beating the undefeated Chiefs. “That’s what makes them a championship team.”
The 2015 Broncos provided the blueprint. They went 9-3 in one-score games and 5-2 in those decided by a field goal or less. This is where a slow heartbeat matters.
Even while getting clobbered early, the Broncos’ knees never wobbled. The defense remained angry, producing three takeaways in the red zone, matching their 2014 season total.
“It was a special group. They were consistent,” defensive coordinator Wade Phillips said. “You have to stay together. You get into a rut in a season, a game and don’t reach your potential because you start pointing fingers at the other side of the ball. We played as a team.”
When the Broncos responded during the 2015 season, many opponents wilted. But the Chiefs were built on motivation and vengeance, exhausted by a six-game losing streak to the Broncos. Against what would be viewed as a historically great defense, the Chiefs drove 61 yards in six plays to take a seven-point lead with 2:27 remaining.
It was a measure of how good the Broncos were that they did not require Manning to be perfect. But with the fire alarms blaring, they needed his finest hour.
“I remember when we took over the ball to begin the fourth quarter and Peyton had such intensity and enthusiasm,” Ryan Harris said. “Those of us in the huddle believed we were going to win the game. You just knew Peyton was going to make plays. And he was so calm on that last drive.”
Manning dissected the Chiefs like a surgeon. He finally capitalized on single-high coverage — the type of recognition triggered by his film study and photographic memory — and connected with Sanders for a 19-yard touchdown. Manning has forever said that clutch drives start with a big completion.
“When we got that first one to D.T. that’s when I felt like we had something going,” Manning said.
The Chiefs are built like those Broncos. They play their best when it matters most. Mahomes has 11 touchdowns with nine interceptions this season. But he boasts six touchdowns and one pick on third and fourth down with a 113.0 passer rating.
“A lot of times he doesn’t improvise until those spots,” Chris Harris said. “You have to put them in tougher positions on third down so you can blitz. He will give you a few chances at turnovers.”
The Broncos understand they can win a rock fight with the Chiefs — a path that was not available against the explosive Ravens. But it will not work without taking risks.
“There are so many things to distract you there at that stadium. No. 1 is the sheer amount of people. No 2 is that you are smelling barbecue everywhere. Those linemen better eat a good meal before they get on the bus or that smell will make you hungry,” Ryan Harris said. “And remember Andy Reid is a great play-caller and one of the best coaches at using homefield advantage. He will use 3-to-4 snap counts and change the pace. That’s hard to deal with. And then you throw in Taylor Swift probably being there.”
It’s a lot, especially for a young team that does not have multiple players headed to Canton or veterans with Super Bowl rings. But the Broncos started to change the conversation when they handled the Chiefs last season. The Broncos manufactured some incentive after seeing Mahomes and Travis Kelce attend a Texas Rangers World Series game, wondering how seriously they were taking them if they had time for side trips before arriving in Denver.
The Broncos played with urgency, taking a 14-3 lead, holding it, and no longer looking outclassed.
But they haven’t done it in this place. In Arrowhead. In the sea of red.
“When the Broncos go there now, the Chiefs don’t respect us at all anymore. They’ve got us in a headlock. But it doesn’t have to stay that way,” Chris Harris said. “It would be huge to get a win. We did it. And all I can say is to shut that whole crowd up, to hear that stadium go silent, there is nothing like it.”
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