Bolstering the Front

8/10/2019 Bolstering the Front

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Cardinals vs. Broncos

October 5, 2014 at 2:05 p.m.Sports Authority Field at Mile High

Todays Game is Presented by:


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12 13BRONCOS GAMEDAY BRONCOS GAMEDAY

BY DAVID DeCHANT

Sorry, Broncos fans. Terrance

Knightons favorite food isnt actually

pot roast.

Im a steak guy, Knighton says.

Probably a ribeye. A nice ribeye from

Ruths Chris [Steak House].

The first time he tried the food that

now doubles as his nickname was

on a Jaguars team flight back from

a game, when a clowning teammate

bestowed the new moniker upon

him. Though the pseudonym stuck,

Knighton hasnt exactly embraced the

dish in the years since.

Ive had it four times, he says.

And thats just because people

wanted to tell me that theyve got the

best pot roast.

I just came from a restaurant a

week ago that said they had the best

pot roast in Denver and they invited

me and gave me free food. Im not

going to pass on free food, so I went

and tried it.

The man colloquially known as

Pot Roast or to his teammates as

T-Knight has grown a lot since his

time in Jacksonville, and I dont mean

physically. After joining the Broncos,

he went from a relative unknown to

a national figure in less than a year,

co-starring with a French bulldog in

a tires commercial, establishing a far-

reaching Twitter personality and even

looking to start a clothing line based

on his favorite phrase, Snooo Daaat.

The more you win, the more

opportunities you get, Knighton says.

You look at Peyton [Manning]: he

has 10 commercials on TV at a time,

and thats because of the success

hes had in the league. Hes won a

Super Bowl, hes been MVP and with

winning comes individual accolades

and success.

Knightons successes became

increasingly frequent during his

first year as a Bronco, especially

after veteran defensive tackle Kevin

Vickerson went down for the season

with a hip injury in Week 12 against the

Patriots. Knighton gobbled up double

teams every week down the stretch

and led the team in tackles for loss (3)

and Denvers linemen in tackles (12)

during the playoffs, while also helping

then-rookie Sylvester Williams with

his transition to the starting lineup as

Vickersons replacement.

The signature play that turned Pot

Roast into a household name was

perhaps the Broncos biggest of the

year: Late in the third quarter of the

AFC Championship Game, with the

Patriots facing fourth-and-3 at theDenver 29, Knighton swam around

Pro Bowl guard Logan Mankins and

burst toward Tom Brady, wrapping

him up for the drive-ending sack.


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the difference between winning teams

and losing teams.

The sixth-year veterans burgeoning

career and seamless transition with

the Broncos make it feel like hes

been in Denver for ages when in

fact, its only been 18 months. His

presence in Denver was only further

14 15BRONCOS GAMEDAY BRONCOS GAMEDAY

I didnt try to go out there and

be Superman, Knighton said of his

impressive late-season run. I just

wanted to make an impact. And when

you get opportunities to play in the

Super Bowl or go to the Super Bowl,

thats like a once-in-a-lifetime thing. I

wanted to win so bad, it just showed

in my play.

John Elway and Co. obviously saw

potential in Knighton, who had played

for Defensive Coordinator Jack Del Rio

in Jacksonville, when they signed him

as a free agent in March of 2013. But

considering hed been demoted to a

backup role on a 2-14 team in 2012,even the Broncos might be pleasantly

surprised by how much impact he has

made in Denver. The player who never

quite blossomed in Jacksonville now

seems like a distant memory, while

Knighton has embraced the tone that

is well established at Dove Valley.

Everything is done for winning,

Knighton says. It starts with Elway and

it goes down all the way to the locker

room.

How we work out, how we prepare,

how we eat, how we practice

everything is based on winning. Guys

hold each other accountable and thats

SUPERMAN.

IMPACT.affirmed when Knighton was voted by

his teammates as one of two defensive

captains for 2014.

Media asked Del Rio all offseason

about a potential leadership void on

defense from the departure of 2013

captains Champ Bailey and Wesley

Woodyard, but the coordinator

reiterated he wasnt worried. With

Knighton stepping up and the addition

of other veterans like DeMarcus Ware, T.J.

Ward and Aqib Talib, that storyline has

been swallowed whole since the season

began.

Before I was voted captain, [Head]

Coach [John] Fox said there were like

seven or eight guys that got a vote,

Knighton says, so that just speaks

volumes about the defense. It doesnt

really put any pressure on me to do too

much or try to speak for the group.

Me and DeMarcus speak to the D-line,

and we know that Von [Miller] and Danny

[Trevathan] are going to speak for thelinebackers and T.J. and Chris [Harris Jr.]

and Talib will lead the back end.

I dont feel any pressure being the

captain. I dont feel like I have to do more.

Its just an honor to have it and it just shows

the respect that my teammates have for

me. It makes you want to play harder and it

makes you want to lead on the field more.

The 6-foot-3, 335-pounders presence

hasnt diminished since the end of last

season, as he continues to draw multiple

blockers and make plays despite the

extra attention. Knighton batted down two

passes against the Chiefs in Week 2, the

latter of which capped a four-down goal-

line stand in the waning seconds to clinch

a 24-17 victory. Against the Seahawks

in Week 3, he rallied the troops on the

sideline and at halftime when trailing 17-3

and then made a crucial tip of a field goal

attempt in the third quarter, sending the

ball wide and keeping the Broncos within

two scores.

Denvers D had just enough lapses

against the Seahawks to allow 26 points,

including the game-winning score in

overtime, but still looked dominant

for stretches against an offense that

brandishes a varied set of talented

weapons. The visible week-to-week

progress and potential return of Danny

Trevathan against the Cardinals have the

defenses potential pointing skyward.


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GREAT DEFENSEBesides the overtime drive and the two drives at the end of the half, we looked

like a championship defense (against Seattle), Knighton says. We didnt give

them anything.

The fact now that were playing more and more together, guys are learning each

other better, were learning the defense better, and its allowing us to play faster.And it shows each week.

As long as Peyton Manning is around, the Broncos defense will come second

in the national attention it garners, no matter how well it plays. Even in 2012, when

Del Rios unit ranked second in yards allowed and fourth in points allowed, it was

Manning and the leagues second-highest scoring offense that occupied most of

the headlines.

But Knighton knows the Mile High faithful still have a special place in their hearts

for dominant play on the other side of the ball, and he hopes he and his teammatescan deliver.

You think back to the Orange Crush days and thats what Denver is known for,

Knighton says. When were playing home games, the crowd cant wait for the

defense to get on the field to make noise.

Fans want to see great defense, and thats what we want to give them.

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