Watch Nathaniel Hackett's Wild Victory Speech After Beating Vikings
The Denver Broncos punctuated a busy summer with a 23-13 win over the Minnesota Vikings in the preseason finale. For an exhibition game, Denver's third and final preseason frame was weighted down with some weird ju-ju after the team stunk it up the week prior in Buffalo.
Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett needed to exorcise that pesky demon, and it's safe to say, he succeeded. The Broncos' players performed with intensity and physicality, and the offense, for the most part, executed.
Afterward, Coach Hackett was elated and fired up as he addressed the team in the locker room with a victory speech.
Look around that locker room as Hackett is hollering. Those players are equally as excited, and to a man, they're engaged with what's happening.
That's a good sign after the despondent depredations of the previous regime of the past three years. Hackett's energy is definitely a shot in the arm, and we're seeing in truncated form that his schematic philosophies are also a big upgrade over the coaching staff of yore.
We finally got to see Hackett's rushing vision on the grass, as the Broncos finished the game with 148 yards on the ground, averaging 5.9 yards per attempt. The O-line of second and third-stringers did a solid job opening up holes for the backs and did not relinquish a single sack in preseason Game 3.
“It starts up front," Hackett said post-game. "That offensive line, they were getting a lot of good movement up front. I think they were pushing those guys back in. Then [RB Mike] Boone started it off by being able to take advantage of some great presses and cutting back the wide receivers. It takes all 11 to run the game, and I really felt like those guys all bought in on that and they looked good today.”
The Broncos have a lot to be excited about. Hackett exits the preseason with a 2-1 record and can now put those exhibition demands to bed.
Next up, the Broncos have the final roster cut-down deadline, which is Tuesday at 2 pm MDT. The roster must be whittled down from 80 to the final 53 players.
From there, the Broncos take to the road in a Week 1 bout at the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night Football. The next two weeks will be a slog, but it'll be worth it when Russell Wilson takes his first snap as a Bronco, in his old stomping grounds no less.
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