NFL games are typically close affairs. It seems like every week half of the games come down to the last drive. The NFL was built that way, after all, to create parity. The draft gives the worst teams the first choice of young talent. The salary cap limits how much a team can spend. And free agency allows players to move from team to team. Each team is pretty evenly matched.
So when someone wins 38-6, like the Broncos did at home against the Falcons on Sunday, it can be a bit surprising. You prepare for close games. For a razor-thin margin of error. So how do you respond the week after, in the hardest league in the world, you make it look so easy?
The Falcons are a first-place team and the Broncos dominated them up and down the field. Everything the Broncos did went right: seemingly all of the play calls were perfect, and every bounce of the ball went toward the orange and blue.
That doesn't happen every game. Not many coaches in the world understand this better than Sean Payton. This is his 17th season as a head coach. He's seen every scenario. Playing after a blowout loss. Playing after a close win. Playing after a bye week at night in the rain. And now, playing a team with a poor record on the road after a blowout home win where your rookie QB gets AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors.
No matter the opponent, or point in the season, the way you combat any psychological letdown is you rely on the exact same routine. Monday you review the game, good or bad. Tuesday you recharge the battery. Wednesday you come in and are introduced to the new opponent. There is a whole new game plan and the word "Falcons" isn't on it anywhere. There will literally be no scenario after Wednesday where you would look back on the Falcons game, unless you turn on the TV or open your phone.
It used to be "Don't read your own press clippings." Now it's, "Don't look at your own PFF grade."
While the world looks back at each week's heroes, Coach focuses on what's ahead, on the small details of each day. The installation packages. The film study. The walk-thrus. The practices. The weight-lifting. The meetings. The week of preparation is a science, down to the time the buses leave the facility for the airport and the dinner menu at the hotel. It's always the same.
And then on Sunday comes the performance itself, and all bets are off. Whereas the preparation is a science, the performance is the art, and anything can happen.
Some of the plays will go according to plan on Sundays, and some will not. Against the Falcons they did. But what happens if things don't go your way? Will you be ready for a fight?
Because even though the opponent is having a rough season, it's the Raiders, after all. No matter where they are, their eyes widen when they see the Broncos. Denver has never won in Vegas and hasn't won on the road against the Raiders since 2015.
The Raiders have also come to Empower and played spoiler on several occasions over the years, including Mike Shanahan's Ring of Fame Induction day.
They seem to revel in it. They seem to think they can win. The only way to shake them of that belief is to be the aggressor, to play with confidence, to trust the preparation, and then cut loose and play free, turning Allegiant Stadium into a sea of orange.
Like so many people who never step onto the football field, the Broncos have never won in Vegas. They've landed at Harry Reid International Airport with stars in their eyes, excited to come home a winner, but instead left defeated, with empty pockets and hollow eyes.
You can't win it all in one hand, and you can't win it all on one play. Whether it's a blowout victory or last-second, one-point win, a football game unfolds 40 seconds at a time. Focus on making each play as good as possible, and the jackpot will take care of itself.
About the Author: Former NFL wide receiver and tight end Nate Jackson played six seasons for the Broncos and is the author of the New York Times Best Selling book "Slow Getting Up."
