🏈 Mile High Magic: Bo Nix Channels His Inner Elway for a 33–32 Classic in Week Seven

It felt like 1986 all over again.

The Broncos pulled off a comeback for the ages, storming back from a 19-point hole in the fourth quarter to beat the Giants 33–32 in Week-7. Rookie quarterback Bo Nix led the charge with a burst of pure Mile High magic that had longtime fans flashing back to the Elway era.

There are certain games that feel less like football and more like a time warp. Sunday’s Broncos–Giants matchup was one of those. A 33–32 finish that felt plucked straight out of the old Mile High highlight reels, back when John Elway used to make the impossible look routine.

For three quarters, Denver looked absolutely cooked. Zero points on the board, the Giants cruising along, fans shifting in their seats and wondering if maybe it was time to beat the traffic. And then, out of nowhere, the kid turned into a legend.

Bo Nix, the rookie who’s been quietly finding his footing all season, suddenly looked like a quarterback possessed by the ghost of Denver comebacks past. Two rushing touchdowns, two through the air, and 33 points in the fourth quarter alone. His scrambling was pure Elway-esque — fearless, creative, and impossible to predict. You could almost hear the old 80s NFL Films narrator warming up his pipes: “And from the shadows of defeat… the Broncos rose again.”

When kicker Wil Lutz drilled that 39-yarder as the clock hit zero, it wasn’t just a win. It was a reminder of what Broncos football used to feel like. Chaos. Hope. Heart pounding in your throat.

Nix didn’t just lead a comeback; he reignited that old Denver spark. He played like a man who’d studied the gospel according to Elway, scrambling, improvising, refusing to let go of the story until he’d flipped the ending.

Sure, it’s early. But after Sunday’s madness, it’s hard not to whisper it under your breath: maybe, just maybe, the Broncos have found their next Comeback Kid.

Welcome back, Mile High Magic. We’ve missed you.

The Strange Case of Loving Two Football Teams — Even When They’re in the Same Division

Every old school Denver Bronco fan remembers 'The Drive'.

It was the 1986 AFC Championship Game, Denver Broncos vs. Cleveland Browns. The Browns were ahead, the crowd was deafening, and victory seemed theirs for the taking. But then, with 5:32 left on the clock, John Elway and the Broncos took the ball on their own two-yard line and marched 98 yards down the field — cool, steady, and impossible to stop. When Elway threw that touchdown to Mark Jackson, the football world went silent for a second… then erupted. The Broncos had done the unthinkable. Cleveland’s playoff dreams vanished right there on their home turf, and helped Elway earn the moniker “The Comeback Kid.”

And that wasn’t the only time Denver ended Cleveland’s hopes. Over the years, it became almost a cruel football tradition. Another season, another heartbreak for the Browns courtesy of the Broncos. The two teams might not be bitter rivals on paper anymore, but their history sure feels like it sometimes.

How It All Started

I’ve been a Broncos fan as long as I can remember. The first Super Bowl I ever saw was Denver vs. Dallas when I was seven years old. The Cowboys won, and I’ve had no love for them since.

But Denver? They got in my blood early. I had the pleasure of watching John Elway play his entire career with one team, something you don’t see much anymore. I watched him go from 'The Drive', to heartbreaking super bowl losses, and then back-to-back Super Bowl wins before retiring like a true legend.

Even now, living all the way down here in Florida, I still catch every Broncos game I can. Orange and blue forever.

But Then There Were the Browns

Here’s the funny part: after years of watching the Browns lose, sometimes spectacularly.. I started noticing something.

Their fans never gave up.

It didn’t matter how bad the season was (and let’s be honest, there were some rough years). They still showed up. Dog masks, bone yard chants, barking from the Dawg Pound in freezing winds and snowstorms. Those fans didn’t just cheer for a team. They lived it.

It’s easy to love a team when they’re on top. It takes something deeper when you can stay loyal through decades of heartbreak. That’s real fandom. That’s grit.

Even as a kid, I respected that. Maybe because I knew the sting of walking into school or work on Monday morning after a brutal playoff loss, but Cleveland fans took that pain and wore it like a badge of honor. There’s something beautiful in that kind of dedication.

Somewhere Along the Way…

I found myself watching the Browns whenever Denver wasn’t playing.

If the Broncos had a bye week or were playing Monday night, I’d flip on the Browns game. Maybe I just wanted to see how they were doing. Maybe I started rooting for them without even realizing it. Somewhere along the line, they became my “backup team.”

Always one to root for the underdog, I found myself quietly pulling for them. And honestly, I’d love to see the Browns finally win a Super Bowl someday. They’ve earned it — and their fans have most definitely earned it.

A Moment I’ll Never Forget

I once went to a Broncos-Browns game in Denver. The Broncos won handily, and as everyone was filing out of the stadium, a group of young, obnoxious frat boy Denver fans started heckling an older gentleman in a Bernie Kosar jersey. Ten of them, one of him.

The guy just smiled, laughed, and said, “Incredible game, guys!” They shouted louder.

I walked up, patted him on the back, and said, “Don’t pay any attention to these punks. Some of us have a lot of respect for you Browns fans.”

He smiled and said, “It’s all good. It’s just sports and having fun, you know?”

That right there, that’s class. Rivalries are great, but there’s a line between pride and arrogance. The best fans know the difference.

So Who Do I Root For When They Play Each Other?

Easy answer: I’ll always root for the Broncos. That’s family. But if the Browns pull off the win, I can’t even be mad about it. It still stings a little, but I tip my hat and give credit where it’s due.

People think I’m crazy for following two teams, especially ones that share a division. But to me, it just makes the sport richer. I get to appreciate different fan cultures, different cities, and different styles of football.

Variety really is the spice of life, and in my case, that variety happens to wear both orange and brown.

The Thing About Bandwagon Fans

Maybe that’s why I’ve never had much patience for bandwagon fans. The ones who switch teams the second the scoreboard starts looking good. Sure, it’s fun to celebrate a championship, but it’s a whole different kind of joy when you’ve sat through the years of heartbreak that came before it.

I guess that’s what I love about both the Broncos and the Browns: loyalty. Whether it’s in Denver, where fans still worship the Mile High Magic, or in Cleveland, where hope never freezes over. There’s a sense of sticking with something, because it means something.

That’s the kind of fandom that reminds me why I fell in love with football in the first place. It’s not just about who’s winning this season. It’s about showing up year after year, through snow, losses, and rebuilds — because that’s your team. And even if you’ve got room in your heart for two of them, as I do, the love runs just as deep either way.

LA Dodgers win 2020 World Series

2020 has been quite a stinker of a year, so I'm gracious for any tidbit of joy that comes my way. The Dodgers World Series win last night against the Tampa Bay Rays made my week and is a great way to close out October for me.

This crazy year had me longing for any sort of normalcy in the spring. I yearned to watch baseball once again, and even started watching Korean baseball games to get my fix. That led to me spending hours reminiscing about Dodgers baseball of the 70s and 80s, which in turn led to getting me back into collecting baseball cards.

When baseball finally started up again, I began watching any game I could, but especially Dodgers games when they played in our market, which wasn't very often in central Florida. I noticed very quickly that the Dodgers had a heck of a team this year and knew they had a chance to go all the way.  This was one of those sweet wins. The last time the Dodgers won a World Series was 1988. This year marked the Dodgers 8th consecutive appearance postseason, but this year's talent finally made it happen. 

I definitely get some strange looks and eye rolls when people find out I'm a Dodgers fan. After all, I live in Central Florida and Tampa Bay is only a little over an hour south of us. Many a friend and colleague have stared me down and asked "Why?" when they learn the Dodgers are my team.  My spiel usually includes my backstory of being born in Southern California and the Dodgers being my older brother and I's team. Growing up in Colorado where there was no major league team to root for in the 70s and 80s, left only one option in our minds, and that was to continue our pledge of allegiance to the Dodgers.

Yes.. no matter where I hang my hat, I will always bleed Dodgers blue. I wish my late brother were around to relish in this long overdue and much deserved win, but I guess I will just have to celebrate for the both of us.

Get yourself a piece of the history on Amazon..

The Covid Lockdown got me back into collecting Baseball Cards

During the Covid-19 pandemic, I had a lot of time to think during the two months I was stuck at home, out of work, and sheltering in place. The anniversary of my big brother's passing happened during this time, and with it came lots of reflection and reminiscing.

That reminiscing led to an immense desire to watch baseball, and to thumb through some old baseball cards I still owned. The memories and feelings that instantly flooded back to me when I touched, smelled, read, and gazed upon my old cards, is the closest thing to time travel I've ever experienced. Memories from decades ago returned to me like they happened yesterday.

And just like that.. I suddenly found myself back on the path of a hobby I once loved so much. Maybe it was a yearning for some kind of normalcy to help ground me during all the current madness. Perhaps it had to do with wanting to feel comfortable in the moment, by looking back fondly on our childhood. 

Being able to actually touch pieces of that very history was surprisingly comforting and therapeutic.  Maybe I was always meant to go down this path once more.. I'm not entirely sure. Nevertheless, here I am again at mid-life getting back into baseball card collecting, and I feel like a kid again.

I got into collecting baseball cards back in the 70s when my brother gifted me a stack of his old cards and duplicates that he didn't need. Over the next two decades, that little stack of cards blossomed into 1000's of baseball and sports cards. At one point I was setting up tables at sports card shows, flea markets, malls, and conventions. 

The money I made selling cards more than paid for my collecting, and gave me a little walking money to boot. There was even a time where I was very close to opening a sports card business with my friend. In retrospect, I'm glad I opted not to do so, as the bottom fell out of the sports card collecting business a couple years later.

1975 Topps Standard and Mini Baseball Cards

My foray back into the hobby consisted of  buying a few cards to complete my Davey Lopes collection. I wanted every Topps brand card ever made during his 16 year career as a player. I thought I had accomplished my goal, but discovered I indeed did not posses every one of his Topps player cards. First off, I remembered there was a miniature set in 1975 that was identical in every way, only smaller.

Also, there were a few years towards the end of Lopes career, when Topps made 'Tiffany Sets' in addition to their standard bubble gum cards. Tiffany sets were of superior quality, made with better paper stock and a glossy finish. They were never packaged with gum, so there was no chance of staining and discoloration. I of course couldn't call my collection complete, until I added these to display next to their bubble gum counterparts. It's a bit extra I know.. but that's just how the mind of some collectors work.

I told myself I was going to stick to collecting vintage Davey Lopes cards if I indeed got back into the hobby, but Lopes was such a versatile player with the rare combo of power and crazy speed, they have never stopped making baseball cards for him. He also had a great career coaching, so he also has plenty of coaching cards as well.

2001 Upper Deck Sweet Spot Card

I quickly broke my rule of only collecting vintage when I saw the above card. This card actually contains the sweet spot of a baseball signed by Davey Lopes! There are tons of cards with autographs, pieces of game used bats, and jerseys. The great thing is that they are incredibly affordable. Many cards like this of bigger name players are pretty affordable as well, costing less than if you were to pay to get something signed by them.

1978 Topps Eddie Murray Rookie Card

The type of collector I am today..

My card collecting habits definitely lean towards vintage cards. Mainly because of the nostalgia and sentimental reasons. But from a collectors standpoint there were only so many of them produced, so they should continue to increase in value as time passes.

I had every intention of sticking with Davey Lopes cards, but I did follow other players as a kid like Eddie Murray, Steve Garvey, and many others. However, the thrill of the hunt often keeps the mind of a collector looking towards the next find. My collecting style is definitely evolving as I get back into the hobby, but here are the card types I've been collecting over the last few weeks..

• Davey Lopes cards all brands new and old
• Old LA Dodgers players cards
• Old Eddie Murray Cards
• Complete Dodgers team sets from the 70s & 80s
• Cards from food companies like Hostess, Fast Food etc.
• Various stars from the 70s, 80s, and early 90s

Not a huge list by any means, but that list could easily equate to thousands of cards, so I really need to dial in what I'm going to collect.


What collecting is like in 2020
Life definitely used to move a lot slower back in the day. I used to love visiting sport card shops to thumb through albums and boxes of cards for hours on end. This obviously is something you can't easily do nowadays. For one thing, there's the matter of Covid-19.  And then there's the fact that these stores simply are not as abundant as they once were. Before this pandemic, sports card shows and conventions still existed, but these are currently very much on hold.

So what's left for a card collecting enthusiast in this day and age? eBay! While it may not be as fun and stimulating as hitting up a card show or shop, it's an incredibly efficient and streamlined way to collect exactly what you want. From the superstar to most obscure players, there hasn't been a card I haven't been able to procure if I wanted it. 

This method of collecting is definitely keeping me focused on what I'm amassing. This time around, I don't want boxes containing 1000's of cards lying around the house. In short, using eBay has helped me to keep laser focused on what I want to collect.

The prices are great as well. I've bought a lot of cards in recent weeks for well under book value. I also often stumble across rare cards I had no clue existed. So while it's definitely a much different way to collect for an old school collector, there are bargains galore and treasures just waiting to be found. With the current state of everything, eBay has been a blessing for folks wanting to dip their toes back into the hobby.

1990 Bo Jackson Score card  #697

I was a huge Denver Broncos fan and followed many players like John Elway for their entire career. I also was a big Denver Nuggets fan as a kid, so don't think I haven't thought about stepping over into football and basketball cards as well. I'm not sure exactly how my collecting habits will continue to evolve, but I'm excited to explore and learn about the hobby all over again.

In case you're also getting into baseball or sports card collecting once again,

here is some great stuff to start up with that I've found on Amazon..

   

The LA Dodgers of the 70s & 80s.. when baseball was magical to me. Lockdown Day 58

I like baseball.  However, I was a bigger fan in years past, and especially when I was younger. I'm not entirely sure I would have ever gotten into it at all if not for my big brother.  He lived for baseball, and his team was the LA Dodgers. Growing up in southern California for a good part of our childhood, the Dodgers were my brother's team. Looking up to big brothers as younger siblings often do, the Dodgers also became my team.


My brother often went to Dodgers games with his friends in Los Angeles.  I remember one night when I was about five years old, I laid in my bed crying because I wasn't allowed to go to the game with my brother and his friends.  My Mother came into my room, turned on my Mickey Mouse radio and dialed it in to the Dodgers game. She sat on the bed with me for a while and told me to listen real close. After a few moments she exclaimed "Do you hear that? It's your brother Danny! He's screaming and cheering for the Dodgers!". Even at five years old, I was skeptical as to how she knew it was him, but I put my ear close to the radio and listened to the game intently until I fell asleep. The next day, I awoke to find my brother had brought me something back from the game. I think it was a pennant or a mini plastic Dodgers cap.  I'm not sure if my mother put him up to that, or if he just felt sorry for me.

The Dodgers were on a tear for the better part of the 70s. They finished 1st or 2nd in the league for an entire decade for all but two seasons. They finished in 3rd place in '72 and '79. They lost the World Series to the New York Yankees in both '77 and '78. I always remember my brother absolutely hating the Yankees, so by default, I of course hated them too. Other boys my age idolized Reggie Jackson while I abhorred him. I would even trade away any Reggie Jackson baseball cards from my collection for Dodger players. I even once rigged a Jackson card in the spokes of my bicycle as a noise maker, which was an unforgivable sin back in the day, as that was something you reserved for 'common' player cards. 

The Dodgers had their comeuppance however in 1981, when they won the World Series against the Yankees four games to two.  My brother was so nervous, as the Dodgers lost the first two games.  They then rallied and won the next four, and my brother was on top of the world for weeks.  I was happy about it too, and was proud to call myself a Dodgers fan. I remember a wonderful sense of fulfillment I suddenly got from being a part of something bigger.  At that time, we had lived in Colorado for about two years and had no Major League Baseball team to follow, so we were faithful Dodgers fans through and through.  I would get crap from the kids at school who would call me a bandwagon jumper, but I took pride in telling them I grew up in California and was watching Dodgers games when I was 4 years old.

The longest running infield in history..

Ron Cey, Bill Russell, Davey Lopes, Steve Garvey

I remember the Dodgers having the most incredible players during those magical years.  You had players like Fernando Valenzuela, Pedro Guerrero, Dusty Baker, Steve Garvey, and my brother and I's hero.. Davey Lopes.  Lopes 10-year slash line with the Dodgers (batting average / on base percentage / slugging avg) was .262 / .349 / .380. Nothing to shake a stick at for sure, but what has always been remarkable to me, was that Lopes stole 418 bases during his ten years with the Dodgers, only being caught 85 times. In one game, he stole five consecutive bases and set a franchise record that stands to this day. He wasn't a big slugger, but he was super fast and could make magic happen.

During this whole Covid mess, my enthusiasm for baseball has recently morphed from interest into passion.  It's the classic dilemma "You don't know what you have until it's gone". I've been dying to watch the Dodgers, but am really been desperate to watch any game whatsoever. Not knowing when I will be able to watch MLB games once again is driving me nuts. I can only imagine how crazy the hard core fans are feeling right now. 

As a way to help cope, I sprung for ESPN+ early this week, and have been filling my free time with watching old 80s Dodgers games. Its been a great way to re-live my youth, and has brought back lots of great memories. I've also begun watching KBO Korean Baseball. It really is a nice way to pass an afternoon.  As crazy as it may sound, seeing the park, the baseball diamond, and simply watching the game being played, is bringing back a sense of normalcy to my spring. I neglected baseball for a long time.  On the other side of this pandemic, I won't make that same mistake.  Not only in regards to baseball, but for a long list of things.

• For the Dodgers Fan:  Dodger Blue website

• MY KBO:  ( The best site around for those new to Korean Baseball )