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The Denver Broncos ended Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills’ Super Bowl hopes by betting on preparation when the season was on the line. In the Divisional Round, Marvin Mims Jr. turned a practice win into a game-defining strike. The moment traced back to daily battles with Patrick Surtain II, the standard of Denver’s defense. That history mattered. It shaped confidence. It shaped the call.
Broncos head coach Sean Payton explained why the play stayed alive, as reported by DNVR Sports’ Zac Stevens. “He ran that same route on Surtain and when I say like beat him, it was a double move and we just hadn’t called that play in a while and it looked so good in our joint practice,” Payton said. “I’m like, man, that’s got to go to the call sheet.”
After Marvin Mims beat the “No. 1 corner in the world,” Sean Payton knew he had to run that play in the game. pic.twitter.com/C2k7KPl8Nd
— Zac Stevens (@ZacStevensDNVR) January 19, 2026
The reminder stuck. It carried into the Broncos’ final preparation. “And when we did our video the night before and I put the practice clip up, I said, you’re beating the number one corner in the world,” Payton continued. “All right. I don’t care who they put over there in the game tomorrow. We’re running this play.”
Even then, patience tested him. “So there’s a few times and I’ll say to the guys in the booth, guys, we can’t finish this game and me not having called that play,” Payton said. “And that was one of those plays.”
Practice told the truth. The Broncos listened.
The game tightened late. Every snap felt heavier. With 55 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Payton finally called it. Bo Nix dropped back and launched deep left. Marvin Mims Jr. separated. Twenty-six yards. Touchdown. The Broncos surged ahead 30–27, and the stadium shook.
The Bills refused to fade. A clutch field goal forced overtime. Tension climbed again. Still, the Broncos stayed composed and finished the job, escaping with a 33–30 Divisional Round victory.
This was not luck. It was memory. A route saved. A moment trusted. Practice reps against Patrick Surtain II became proof, not theory.
When the season hangs in the balance, preparation speaks the loudest. And when it does, will the Broncos keep listening?
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