The Denver Broncos and Cleveland Browns exchanged a thrilling Monday Night Football game that was capped off by Broncos cornerback Ja’Quan McMillan returning a pick-6 that sealed the game. Following the game, he took to X and posted this response.
Where Browns wide receiver Jerry Jeudy made NFL history in his revenge game, that wasn’t the highlight of the night. The McMillan pick-6 sealed an unbelievable back-and-forth between two defensive-oriented teams. The third-best defense in the league allowed quarterback Jameis Winston to have a career game with 497 passing yards and four touchdowns.
Regardless, McMillan’s interception put the game to rest and left the fans of Mile High Stadium in pure jubilation. The third-year corner has had an impressive season. He had two interceptions, eight pass deflections, and one forced fumble. In Monday’s game, McMillan had half of his pass deflection total for the entire season. Although he wasn’t matched up with Jeudy, he made life difficult for the other Browns pass catchers.
Ja’Quan McMillan’s pick-6 highlights a dominant defensive season for Broncos
As mentioned before, Denver has the third-best defense in the NFL, only allowing 18 points per game. The matchup against Cleveland was the second time they allowed 30 or more points. The first time came against the Baltimore Ravens. This time, there were a plethora of factors. Winston and Broncos quarterback Bo Nix had a back-and-forth throughout the game. The Browns and Broncos broke the internet after trading unreal long TDs.
Regardless of Winston’s 497 yards, he had three interceptions. Two of them were returned for touchdowns, the first by linebacker Nik Bonitto and then by McMillan. Both interceptions swung the momentum of the game like crazy. However, the latter secured Denver’s eighth win of the season.
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For the year, the Broncos have 47 sacks, 12 interceptions, and three return touchdowns. The Sean Payton era has had its true impact felt through the 2024 season. With a defense playing out of its mind and a veteran, and savvy head coach, he’s maximizing the talent he has.
Denver is firmly in the driver’s seat of a Wild Card spot. However, they’ll want to supersede the Los Angeles Chargers in the rankings. Those teams square off in Week 16, where the Chargers took the first matchup. The confidence of this young defense has emerged every week. Not to mention, their franchise quarterback has improved every week. They’ll hope to rely more on their defense through the final stretch of the season.