The Lead
Just three weeks ago, running back Latavius Murray took the field for the Saints in the first game of the 2022 NFL International Series in London. Two wild days later, Murray became a Bronco — and now he will play in London for the second time this season.
"It's a cool experience," Murray said. "Obviously there's a lot of NFL fans in the U.K., and so [I'm] excited to go back and leave with a win."
Somewhat remarkably, Murray is not the first NFL player to play in London twice in the same season. Cornerback Gareon Conley did so in 2019 with the Texans and Raiders and running back Adrian Peterson played there in 2017 with the Cardinals and Saints.
As a 10-year veteran, this will be Murray's fourth time playing in London in his career. He played at Wembley Stadium in 2014 as a member of the Raiders, Twickenham Stadium in 2017 with the Vikings and, most recently, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2022 with the Saints.
Murray noted that the experience of playing in London has changed since his first time playing there, as global interest in the NFL has grown significantly over the last eight years.
'When I went years ago, back in [2014], they cheered mostly for the kicks," Murray said. "And then now, I think the sport has grown over there since then, and a lot of fans from the U.S. come into town. I feel like it's pretty on point with who they're rooting for."
Murray scored his first touchdown as a Bronco in Denver's Week 7 game against the Jets, and he said that he hopes traveling to London will allow the team to reset and regroup after four straight losses.
"I think we need to look at it [like an opportunity]," Murray said after the game. "We need to look at it as a way to go away as a team, come together and leave London with a win. We've got to start there and let the rest play out how it plays out, but we need to go into London with a mindset of leaving with a win, and that's it."
Below the Fold
To conclude a full weekend of Super Bowl XXXII festivities, the players and coaches of the 1997 Broncos were honored with a halftime ceremony on the field during Sunday's game. Twenty-five years after winning Denver's first Super Bowl in franchise history, the players emerged from the tunnel one-by-one, earning a standing ovation from the crowd.
"It's been incredible," Pro Football Hall of Famer and Super Bowl XXXII MVP Terrell Davis said after the ceremony. "The fun thing about winning is coming back and reuniting with not only your players and the guys you did it with, but obviously Mike [Shanahan], Gary Kubiak and all of the guys that were instrumental in that happening. I never thought about it then — 25 years. It's hitting me like a ton of bricks now. That's a long time ago. We still have very strong bonds, [and] we talk a lot. To come back to Denver and celebrate this, it's pretty sweet, man. It's pretty sweet. I'm kind of fired up. I'm thinking about playing maybe a few plays in this game. That's a short thought — I have to come back down to reality."
Shanahan reflected on what made the 1997 Broncos so special, noting that the players were able to overcome adversity and create a close bond both on and off the field.
"There were a lot of big moments in that year," Shanahan said. "We had so much fun. We had so many great games in that two- or three-year time frame. The thing that I really enjoy is that we had so much character on our football team. We had a little bit of adversity but our guys persevered. They weren't going to give in. I don't care if it was the loss in Jacksonville or coming in as a Wild Card or not making the Super Bowl after that [13-3] season. You can see that this weekend. You get the chance to be around these guys which you haven't been around for 25 years — a lot of the guys. We had a lot of character on that team. [A] good reason why we won a couple [of Super Bowls]."
