{"id":293321,"date":"2023-10-02T21:30:20","date_gmt":"2023-10-02T21:30:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/allmysportsnews.com\/?p=293321"},"modified":"2023-10-02T21:30:20","modified_gmt":"2023-10-02T21:30:20","slug":"russell-wilsons-three-tds-lead-broncos-to-31-28-win-vs-bears","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allmysportsnews.com\/nfl\/russell-wilsons-three-tds-lead-broncos-to-31-28-win-vs-bears\/","title":{"rendered":"Russell Wilson’s three TDs lead Broncos to 31-28 win vs. Bears"},"content":{"rendered":"

CHICAGO \u2014 The grand opening for Sean Payton\u2019s Denver rendition of \u201cClub Dub\u201d suffered delays and setbacks over the past three weeks.<\/p>\n

It was supposed to debut to rave reviews in early September, but the drywall wasn\u2019t up yet.<\/p>\n

Then Washington came to town for the premiere and the sound system shorted out.<\/p>\n

By the time the Broncos flew home from South Florida, you might have thought the whole thing burned to the ground.<\/p>\n

But finally, the celebration arrived as the calendar flipped to October. In Payton\u2019s hometown, no less. Delayed but not muted.<\/p>\n

It shouldn\u2019t have been this difficult, really, to find reason to crank the locker room music on an autumn Sunday. But finally Denver did after a wild, 31-28 victory over the heat-seeking-turned-hapless Bears.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been lucky enough, the last five times I\u2019ve been here, we\u2019ve won,\u201d said Payton, who mostly grew up just southwest of here in Naperville, referring back to his days as New Orleans\u2019 head coach. \u201cWe\u2019ve been in that locker room, talking and listening to music. It\u2019s nice when you come home, even after so many years, to win here. Hopefully it\u2019s the first of many relative to where we\u2019re going.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just have a lot of work to do still, but these guys can enjoy it.\u201d<\/p>\n

They can enjoy it for the first time this season.<\/p>\n

For the first time with Payton as their head coach.<\/p>\n

For the first time in a true road game since a Nov. 7, 2021 win at Dallas.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cA win is a win,\u201d Denver defensive lineman D.J. Jones said. \u201cYou never take a win for granted. It means a lot getting our first win of the season. \u2026 It was controlled anger. People were angry, but it was controlled. It was like, \u2018we\u2019ve got to do better.\u2019 Everybody knew we had to do better. And we did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not only did they have to do better after a 70-20 debacle last week at Miami, but also after a disastrous start to Sunday which put the Broncos behind 28-7 with 19 minutes, 11 seconds remaining at Solider Field.<\/p>\n

The 24-point run that ensued \u2014 two Russell Wilson touchdown passes, a Jonathon Cooper fumble return for a score amid four straight defensive stops and a go-ahead 51-yard field goal from kicker Wil Lutz \u2014 staved off the franchise\u2019s first 0-4 start since 2019.<\/p>\n

Whether it ends up meaning more than getting to 1-3 instead of 0-4 remains to be seen.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a huge win because this is something that can be a really big turning point for us moving forward,\u201d wide receiver Courtland Sutton said. \u201cThis game is a perfect description of how our season\u2019s been so far. We came out throwing punches, but we got down early. We came back in the second half and guys fought. Guys had that ability to show that there\u2019s no give-up, there\u2019s no quit in our team. It was amazing to watch that.\u201d<\/p>\n

That any risk of quit or give-up existed as the calendar turned to October speaks to how rough the Broncos\u2019 opening stanza has been. A one-point loss at home to Las Vegas. A blown 21-3 lead at home to the Commanders. An historic blowout at the hands of the Dolphins.<\/p>\n

Might a loss Sunday have sent 2023 into a death spiral? Now that question is merely a hypothetical.<\/p>\n

Might it lead to an actual turnaround? It\u2019s a considerable leap from here to there, given the Bears might be the worst team in the NFL and for much of Sunday afternoon they dominated.<\/p>\n

Corrections and clean-up are two of every team\u2019s favorite post-game “c” words regardless of outcome, but several players admitted Sunday they go smoother following a “W.”<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously the film is going to be the film and you\u2019ve got to get your corrections, but when you\u2019re looking at yourself mess up and all that, it\u2019s a little easier when you\u2019ve got a win in the column,\u201d right guard Quinn Meinerz said.<\/p>\n

Cooper\u2019s scoop-and-score tied the game and fully swung its momentum to the Broncos\u2019 sideline, but they don\u2019t win Sunday without a vintage performance from quarterback Russell Wilson. He finished 21-of-28 for 223 yards and three touchdowns, played turnover free and took just one sack.<\/p>\n

He hit back-to-back third-down conversions to Lil\u2019Jordan Humphrey for 11 yards and Sutton for a touchdown to bring Denver within seven. Then he threw a strike up the right side to rookie Marvin Mims, Jr., for 48 yards to set up Lutz\u2019s go-ahead field goal. That came one play after Alex Singleton and the Broncos\u2019 defense snuffed out a fourth-and-1 try from the Bears that would have put them in position to win.<\/p>\n

Through four games, Wilson is averaging 242 passing yards, completing 67.4% of his passes and has nine touchdowns vs. three turnovers.<\/p>\n

After a dart to Sutton brought Denver within 28-14, the 12th-year quarterback unleashed a series of fist-pumps.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis competitive nature is something that a lot of people don\u2019t talk about or give him enough credit for because of how polished he tries to be and the person he tries to be as a leader,\u201d right tackle Mike McGlinchey said. \u201cI\u2019ve been on the other side of those comebacks numerous times. Proud to be his teammate, thankful to be his teammate because that win is just as much about him as it is about anybody else. He put the team on his back in the second half and led us to victory.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wilson on the sideline told teammates, \u201cThey know we\u2019re coming back. They know we\u2019re coming back.\u201d<\/p>\n

The question now is if \u201cClub Dub\u201d is going on tour or if this was a one-Sunday-only type of performance against a team that’s now lost 14 straight games dating to early 2022.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere will be some tough tape tomorrow and I don\u2019t want to sugar-coat anything,\u201d Payton said after his 153rd regular-season win but first in blue and orange. \u201cWe\u2019re going to play a lot better teams on our schedule, and no disrespect to (Bears coach Matt Eberflus) and what they\u2019re trying to do. I\u2019m sure the feeling is the same here.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I think the win was important for the group.\u201d<\/p>\n

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