ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — To land the knockout blow against the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday afternoon, Head Coach Sean Payton dialed up a play based on tendencies the Broncos found in the Chargers’ playoff loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars last season. Keying off a play in which the Jaguars gave the ball to running back Travis Etienne for an outside run, the Broncos lined up in the same formation and appeared to run back the same play with running back Javonte Williams.
After appearing to initiate the outside run, quarterback Russell Wilson fooled Chargers defenders — and even his own teammates. Wilson kept the ball, rolled back toward the left side of the field, faked a quarterback keeper and flicked a pass to tight end Adam Trautman, who was standing wide-open in the end zone for an easy 10-yard touchdown completion.
Williams, the play’s main decoy, said he was caught off guard by Wilson’s pass, but he was thrilled with the play’s outcome.
“On the play [Jacksonville] ran, Etienne got the ball and ran around the outside, so Coach Payton felt like if we showed that formation again, they would think I was getting the ball and he could have Russ boot out,” Williams said on Monday. “But I actually didn’t know [Trautman] would go out for a pass because the whole week in practice, Russ had just been running the ball. So when he threw it, I was shocked. But it worked, so I’m glad he did it.”
For Payton, the touchdown — the payoff of the Broncos’ creativity and attention to detail — was sweet.
“I don’t want to sound shallow, but there’s nothing better,” Payton said of seeing a play work to perfection. “In other words, you’re seeing something on film from a playoff game a year ago. Sometimes, it might be a clip you see two years prior, and you’re counting on human behavior, and you’re counting on them seeing something and reacting in a way in which you think they’re going to. It was a play that came off a fourth-and-1 against Jacksonville last year in the playoffs. You’re rewinding it, you’re rewinding it, and all of a sudden you see something and then you begin to tinker with it, and you put it in.”
While Payton said most of the touchdowns in the NFL each weekend are player-based and a result of top players making game-changing plays, he said Trautman’s catch was a satisfying example of how scheming a receiver open and fooling an opposing defense can lead to a score.
“We’re constantly, as coaches, looking at ways on how can we not trick them, but how can we give our guys a chance to be in a better position?” Payton said. “That was an example yesterday and … it’s addictive.”
Kicker Wil Lutz connected on the ensuing extra point moments later to extend the Broncos’ lead to 24-7, and a forced fumble by the Broncos’ defense closed out Denver’s sixth win in its past seven games.
While the Broncos were firmly in command before the Trautman touchdown, Payton said that the play was specific to Los Angeles and motivated by the Chargers’ anticipated reaction, so it made sense to call it to close out the game rather than save it for a different opponent.
“It’s not like, ‘Oh, let’s pull out the Wing-T play pass this week,'” Payton said. “It’s more opponent-specific … relative to a look that you know they’ve seen. You’re counting on a reaction relative to the look they saw not too long ago.”
Sarah Wilson is your guide to the latest trends, viral sensations, and internet phenomena. With a finger on the pulse of digital culture, she explores what’s trending across social media and pop culture, keeping readers in the know about the latest online sensations.
