Level 1 — Absolute Beginner
The Denver Broncos played the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday night. The Rams were the big favorite to win the Super Bowl.
At halftime, Denver was losing 16 to 0. But the Broncos did not give up. They scored again and again in the second half.
With 47 seconds left, quarterback Bo Nix ran the ball into the end zone. Denver led 30 to 26.
On the last play, safety Talanoa Hufanga caught the ball. It was his second interception. Denver won the game.
- favorite
- The team most people think will win.
- halftime
- The break in the middle of a game.
- quarterback
- The player who throws the ball in American football.
- end zone
- The area where a player scores.
- safety
- A defense player who stays far back.
- interception
- When the defense catches the ball that was thrown by the other team.
- score
- To get points.
- win
- To finish first in a game.
Level 2 — Elementary
On Sunday night, the Denver Broncos beat the Los Angeles Rams 30 to 26. Before the season, many people said the Rams were the best team in the league. Now they have a record of one win and two losses.
The start was bad for Denver. The Broncos lost 16 to 0 at halftime. Then quarterback Bo Nix threw two touchdown passes and two successful two point passes. The score was tied before the fourth quarter.
Late in the game, Talanoa Hufanga caught a pass and ran 66 yards for a touchdown. The Rams then scored again, and they led 26 to 23. Nix answered by running the ball in from inches away with 47 seconds left.
Hufanga then made his second interception in the end zone on the last play. The Broncos now have a record of two wins and one loss.
- league
- A group of teams that play each other.
- record
- The number of wins and losses a team has.
- touchdown
- A score worth six points in American football.
- two point pass
- A pass after a touchdown that gives two extra points.
- tied
- With the same number of points.
- yard
- A unit of length in American football.
- end zone
- The area at each end of the field where players score.
- comeback
- A win after being far behind.
Level 3 — Intermediate
The Denver Broncos completed one of the biggest comebacks of the young NFL season on Sunday night, beating the Los Angeles Rams 30 to 26 and handing the preseason Super Bowl favorites a record of one win and two losses. Denver improved to two wins and one loss.
The Broncos trailed 16 to 0 at halftime. In the second half quarterback Bo Nix threw two touchdown passes and two conversion passes, tying the game entering the fourth quarter. He finished 17 of 34 for 186 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.
The final five minutes were wild. Safety Talanoa Hufanga returned an interception 66 yards for a touchdown, giving Denver a 23 to 19 lead. Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford answered with a 48 yard touchdown pass to Konata Mumpfield after a Denver cornerback slipped, and Los Angeles led 26 to 23.
Nix then drove the Broncos downfield and scored on a keeper from inches with 47 seconds left. A questionable pass interference call had earlier wiped out another Rams interception on the drive. Hufanga sealed the win with his second interception, in the end zone, on the final play.
- comeback
- A victory after trailing by a large margin.
- conversion
- An extra scoring attempt after a touchdown.
- cornerback
- A defender who covers receivers on the outside.
- pass interference
- A penalty for illegally blocking a receiver.
- keeper
- A play in which the quarterback keeps the ball and runs.
- downfield
- Toward the opponent's end of the field.
- preseason
- Before the official season begins.
- wiped out
- Removed completely.
Level 4 — Advanced
The Denver Broncos staged a second-half rescue on Sunday night, overturning a 16 to 0 halftime deficit to beat the heavily favored Los Angeles Rams 30 to 26 and leave the preseason Super Bowl favorites at one win and two losses. Denver improved to two and one.
Quarterback Bo Nix, who finished 17 of 34 for 186 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, threw a pair of touchdown passes and two conversion throws to level the score entering the fourth quarter. The decisive drama arrived late: safety Talanoa Hufanga's 66 yard interception return put Denver in front 23 to 19, only for Matthew Stafford to hit Konata Mumpfield from 48 yards after cornerback Riley Moss fell, restoring a 26 to 23 Rams lead.
Nix responded with completions of 39 and 21 yards and finished the drive with a keeper from inches with 47 seconds remaining. The march was aided by a contentious pass interference flag that erased a second Rams interception; commentators felt the receiver had pulled the defender down, not the reverse.
Hufanga, who had already supplied the go-ahead points, ended the night by intercepting Stafford in the end zone on the last snap, a fitting finish for a game that upended early-season expectations about the league's presumed best team.
- deficit
- The amount by which a team is behind.
- conversion
- A scoring attempt made after a touchdown.
- decisive
- Settling the outcome of something.
- contentious
- Likely to cause disagreement.
- erased
- Removed as if it had never happened.
- go-ahead
- Putting a team in the lead for the first time.
- snap
- The moment the ball is put into play.
- upended
- Overturned or thrown into disorder.
.jpg%3Fwidth%3D800&w=3840&q=75)
Talk about this article with KatePractice this story's vocabulary in a real spoken conversation with your AI tutor