Tom Krasovic: Upset of Eagles means Broncos have arrived as Super Bowl contenders

It’s time to regard the Denver Broncos as Super Bowl contenders.

You knew this day was coming when Sean Payton, convinced that the NFL’s wealthiest ownership group would perform well, took over in Mile High Land a few years ago.

Sunday, that day arrived. The Broncos, two-plus seasons into Payton’s run, joined a softening list of AFC contenders by beating the NFL’s most talented team on the road.

Importantly, it wasn’t a fluke.

Scoring 18 unanswered points in the fourth quarter as their playcallers found good cards to play and their players kicked butt, the Broncos beat the Philadelphia Eagles 21-17.

Denver (3-2) dealt the Eagles (4-1) just their second loss in 22 games and can build on it by beating the pitiful Jets (0-5) in London next week.

Here’s what jumped out with the Broncos after a dismal three quarters by their offense: the pieces with Denver now fit and recall, if not in talent of those Drew Brees-led clubs, the coherence of Payton’s better New Orleans Saints teams, the fourth of which won a Super Bowl.

When it mattered most, the Broncos were stronger, faster and smarter than the defending champs.

Payton’s varied playcalling and Bo Nix’s smart quarterbacking clicked on a trio of scoring drives and a go-ahead two-point pass.

Receiver Courtland Sutton snatched two misfires. He won often against a good cornerback, Quinyon Mitchell.

J.K Dobbins, building on his comeback season with the Chargers, timed up several sharp rushes.

Launching the comeback from 17-3, Denver’s blockers outplayed the NFL’s most talented defensive front.

One sequence saw the blockers announce Denver as a resourceful outfit. When veteran Mike McGlinchey hobbled out, Alex Palzewski replaced him and promptly displaced and pancaked tackle Bryon Young, leading to Dobbins’ 2-yard surge on one of several effective power-style run plays down the stretch.

After Nix led another TD drive, Payton shone his brightest by unleashing a two-point pass design that created a good angle for receiver Troy Franklin against the Eagles’ least capable cornerback. Off a rollout, Nix hit his former Oregon teammate slanting toward a front pylon.

“We’ve been repping that play a few weeks,” Nix said to the media.

Defensively, the Broncos have an emerging star in Nikk Bonitto, 26.

The edge rusher, whom Payton inherited, had 2 1/2 sacks, a tackle for loss and victories in setting the edge.

Twice besting All-Pro right tackle Lane Johnson, who was sidelined recently by a neck injury, Bonitto led an explosive, varied defense called by coordinator Vance Joseph.

Yet for all their fourth-quarter success, the Broncos may have suffered a third defeat this season on the game’s final play, had All-Pro cornerback Pat Surtain not swatted Jalen Hurts’ 29-yard pass that went to receiver DeVonta Smith’s fingertips in the end zone.

For folks who enjoy high-caliber football, Payton’s rising Broncos, thankfully, aren’t another AFC team that’s devolved into a mess.

Suffice it to say that John and Jim Harbaugh haven’t been saying, “Who’s got it better than us?” in recent days.

John’s Ravens have imploded, a shocking development. Injuries have hit hard, but the problem-solving and roster depth hasn’t met Harbaugh’s standard.

Brother Jim, in the meantime, may have contracted the Chargering virus.

Dumb penalties. Key turnovers. Missed tackles. Team Spanos has stunk it up its past two games, racking up 192 penalty yards and earning boos Sunday in the Kroenke Dome, where the Commanders turned the gifts — which included multiple injuries to blockers — into a win.

The cheap Bengals continue to Bungle, wasting another year of quarterback Joe Burrow’s career due to injuries related to poor blocking.

As for Peter Carroll’s first Raiders team: If I had to choose between eating only broccoli for breakfast, lunch and dinner or watching the Raiders, I’d ask for a fork and a bowl of melted butter.

So the Broncos being the Broncos again is good for the AFC, where the Colts have also ascended to give the Bills and Chiefs some competition.

Because there’s always a San Diego angle, know this, too, about the Broncos.

Payton began his coaching career at San Diego State as a 25-year-old assistant under Denny Stolz and later served as Marshall Faulk’s positional coach for Faulk’s final two seasons at the school. In chats, he oozed confidence and spoke at warp speed.

Broncos safety JL Skinner, a graduate of Point Loma High School — the alma mater of Hall of Fame cornerback Eric Allen — survived a final-drive pass Sunday in which he grappled with Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert. A flag could have flown; it did not. A sixth-round pick in Denver’s first draft under Payton, the 6-foot-4 Skinner has become a regular in Joseph’s defense. He must be bright.

Joseph was sharp as a rookie defensive coordinator, as Philip Rivers learned nine years ago when Joseph’s guys picked off four passes in Mission Valley to lead the Miami Dolphins to the win as a four-point underdog.