After an ugly 1-5 start to the season, the Broncos returned to .500 with a four-game winning streak. It’s no coincidence that the Broncos won the turnover battle in all four games.
In the five games the Broncos have won this season, they are plus-13 in turnover margin. In the five games the Broncos have lost, they are minus-7. In Sunday night’s win over the Vikings, the Broncos were plus-3, which Peyton says is why they won.
“If you look at the stat line, Minnesota did a lot more than we did. We really struggled offensively, especially on third down,” Payton said. “One thing we did was we carried the ball three times and we didn’t turn it over, so that becomes a trump card in a game like this.”
Payton acknowledged the Broncos have things they need to do better, but as long as the offense doesn’t turn the ball over and the defense carries it, he thinks they’ll be a tough team to beat.
“We were fortunate to get the win. I’m proud of our fight. We still have a lot to clean up, but when you don’t play the way you want, turnovers and takeaways can do that for you,” Payton said.
A season that looked lost a month ago now looks set to end with a play-off berth. And turnover is the biggest reason for that.
