NFL Rumors: Denver Broncos Share Secret in New England Patriots Win at AFC Championship Match

Jan 28, 2016 01:07 PM EST

The New England Patriots suffered a devastating loss in the hands of the Denver Broncos as the two NFL teams battled it out for a Super Bowl 50 spot. With Tom Brady and Peyton Manning on the front lines, the AFC Championship match had been a close fight until the end. Before the said face off, however, the Rob Gronkowski squad was pegged as the favorite to go all the way to the Super Bowl 50.

Despite the quarterback woes of the Denver Broncos, the New England Patriots still failed to snag the highly coveted win. Moreover, Brady came out of the game badly bruised and battered - possibly even worse for wear than the supposedly injured Manning. This came as a bit of a shock especially since the Kansas City Chiefs, which the New England Patriots faced in the playoffs first, barely touched Brady.

The Denver Broncos, meanwhile, had no problems delivering physical attacks against Brady. The Brock Osweiler team did not think twice about tackling or sacking the New England Patriots star. In fact, it appears that the all-out attack on Brady was the secret weapon of the Denver Broncos in winning the highly coveted Super Bowl 50 spot.

"I tried to lay on him [Brady] a few times," admitted a Denver Broncos star via the Monday Morning Quarterback

The Denver Broncos focused their energy to shutting down all of Brady's defenses. No other member of the New England Patriots team had been attacked and mauled as much as their quarterback. This came as no surprise, though, as the Denver Broncos began their assault of Brady way before the game. In the days before the AFC match, fans of the Manning squad had been mocking the New England Patriots quarterback, calling him a "crybaby."

"The New England Patriots offensive line wasn't mauled, manhandled or overpowered in the AFC Championship Game; it was simply ignored," noted Robert Klemko of the MMQ. He went on to state, "To the three or four rushers the Denver Broncos sent careening toward Brady on any given down, the five men standing in front of them might as well have been rec league hoopers taking on the Golden State Warriors."

Klemko further noted, "And the quarterback was subject to all manner of indignity in a 20-18 loss."

Even before the game, some sports analysts already advised the Denver Broncos to target Brady. Danny Kanell, an NFL sports analysts, earlier said that the New England Patriots could only be toppled once Brady is out. Hence, it became imperative for the Denver Broncos to do everything in their power to intimate the New England Patriots quarterback.

"Like, they've been talking about him crying, I almost feel like this is the type of game where you have to send a message like in the first and second quarter, the first half, hit him a couple of times where it's a little past the whistle. Like, let him know you're around. Get those knockdowns, get those hits on him, make him aware that you're coming after him," said Kennell via Awful Announcing.

He added, "You gotta push the envelope. I would almost challenge them to like be like 'You know what, get a 15-yarder in the first half. Draw a line somewhere, but say 'We have to send a message.'"