DENVER — The former CU Buffalo and South High School star wasn't supposed to get this much work in his NFL debut, but playing as well as Phillip Lindsay was, Vance Joseph opted to stick with the rookie college free agent.
“He was hot," said the head coach. "He ran downhill, he made guys miss, so we stayed with the hot hand. But we have three capable backs that dress for the game, along with our fullback. Whoever’s hot gets the carries, and he was hot today so he carried the load.”
Lindsay also scored the Broncos first touchdown in his very first NFL game, a special moment for sure, but the rookie running back didn't allow himself time to celebrate, instead choosing to focus on his next play.
“Honestly, I just thought about how I have to go down and kick off," said Lindsay. "That is my life. It is about winning and you learn fast. There are ups and downs.”
It's the same thing Lindsay showed in Boulder. He's doesn't care a lot about individual numbers - he only cares about winning.
“This is the NFL. For me, I don’t care about stats," Lindsay said. "It’s about winning. It’s about me doing my part, Royce doing his part, Booker doing his part. If we all stick together, we’re going to be fine.”
Lindsay may not like talking about himself, but his head coach was more than happy to share his thoughts about the rookie.
“He played well. He’s a mature player. He had 104 yards I think from the line of scrimmage today, along with Freeman, 180 total from two rookies. Those two guys are mature players, they’re special players and they’re NFL backs so that’s what we expect from those guys.
This was a moment, a game, that Phillip Lindsay will never forget. From scoring his first touchdown at the beginning of the game to exchanging NFL jersey's with his former CU teammate Tedric Thompson after the game.
“That’s my brother. I was excited to be able to do that," he said. "I haven’t got to see him in a long time. To be able to see him go out three, he actually made a couple tackles on me. It was exciting.”
Exciting the perfect word to describe Phillip Lindsay.
