Denver Broncos cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian had a clutch performance against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, becoming the first cornerback in franchise history to record two sacks and an interception in the same game.
McMillian’s second sack came on 3rd-and-10 on Kansas City’s final drive of the game.
“I ran that play so many times,” McMillian said after an eventual 22-19 win. “It was my first time actually running it in a game situation, and ‘VJ’ was always telling me, don’t show it early. ‘You are going to get there, they don’t think you’re coming.’ So that is exactly what I did.”
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McMillian explained that he timed his rush perfectly based on quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ hand gestures.
“I just try and hold it as long as possible, and you try and find keys to when the ball is snapped — I noticed early in the game when he was snapping the ball, his hands were coming up and the ball was coming out,” McMillian said. “So I just timed it so when his hands start coming up, I start sneaking toward the edge and made a play. They didn’t slide a protection. I just went in.”
A few plays later, Denver quarterback Bo Nix got the best of KC’s defense on a crucial third-and-long just before the two-minute warning.
“Great film study for them, because they called it out (the defense),” Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones said after the game. “I heard them calling it out. They actually switched the line. You can see on the film, Bo Nix kinda switched the line. So they knew it. We gotta do a better job in disguising (the play).”
Nix then completed a 20-yard pass to Courtland Sutton and the Broncos later kicked a game-winning field goal as time expired.
On defense, McMillian read Mahomes, and on offense, Nix identified KC’s plan. Those key moments proved to be pivotal in Denver’s upset win.
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This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: NFL: Ja’Quan McMillian identified Patrick Mahomes ‘key’ in upset win
