Broncos felt Demaryius Thomas was “probably out…

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The Broncos opened Sunday’s game against the Lions by honoring Demaryius Thomas and the late wide receiver’s memory hung over the rest of the game as well.

Denver’s final scoring drive covered 88 yards, which was Thomas’ jersery number and decals with that number were all around the Broncos during their 38-10 win over the Lions. That created a bookend with the Broncos’ tribute to Thomas from the start of the game as they lined up with 10 players and took a delay of game penalty in Thomas’ memory.

The Lions declined that penalty, but they couldn’t find a way to stop the Broncos the rest of the day.

“He’s always going to be there [for us],” wide receiver Tim Patrick said, via Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com. “I think he’s going to be there more in life . . . yeah, he probably was out there with us.”

The Broncos did Thomas proud on Sunday and they also did themselves a favor with the win. They are in the thick of the playoff race at 7-6 and will take anything they can to help push them toward the postseason in the final four weeks.