Nik Bonitto mirrors Von Miller with game-sealing strip sack in Charlotte

Ten years after Von Miller wrecked the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50, Nik Bonitto beat them the same way

Nov 8, 2026, 3:24 PM

Watch: Who needs to step up the most for the Broncos against Jacksonville, Alex Singleton or Nik Bonitto? | 9 mins

Ten years after Von Miller wrecked the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50, Nik Bonitto beat them the same way.

Nik Bonitto strip-sacked Bryce Young in the final two minutes on Sunday, and the Broncos held on for a 26-21 win at Bank of America Stadium. Denver goes into its bye week at 7-2.

Carolina had one last chance. The Panthers got the ball back at their own 44 with 1:49 left, trailing by five, and Young hit Tetairoa McMillan for 20 yards to get them moving. On the next snap, Nik Bonitto got around left tackle Rasheed Walker and knocked the ball out as he took Young down. Denver recovered, and Bo Nix picked up a first down on a one-yard sneak to run out the clock.

The play looked a lot like what Miller did to Cam Newton in Santa Clara in February 2016. Miller forced two fumbles in Super Bowl 50. His first strip sack came early and led to a Malik Jackson fumble-recovery touchdown. The second came in the fourth quarter, with Denver up 16-10 and just over four minutes left. T.J. Ward recovered it deep in Carolina territory, and C.J. Anderson scored a few plays later to clinch a 24-10 win. Miller finished with 2.5 sacks and was named Super Bowl MVP.

After the game, Sean Payton was asked about Bonitto’s sack.

“That was big,” Payton said. “Man, they had kind of converted two long third downs, and we talked about the ball security, and it finally came.”

“It was a huge play obviously. It was a huge play.”

Denver needed it. Young had his best game in weeks, going 28-of-39 for 276 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. Tight end Darren Waller caught seven passes for 90 yards and a score. The Panthers led 14-13 late in the third quarter and had the ball at the Denver 1 before a disputed end-zone interception swung the game back to the Broncos.

From there, Denver followed its usual script. The Broncos trailed by a point going into the fourth quarter and outscored Carolina 13-7 the rest of the way. They went 80 yards in 14 plays to take a 19-14 lead with 10:17 left. Rookie Jonah Coleman later scored on a nine-yard run. Nix went after Carolina’s practice-squad cornerbacks all afternoon and finished 25-of-37 for 237 yards and two touchdowns. The Panthers also hurt themselves with 13 penalties for 119 yards.

The win is Denver’s fifth straight and its latest one-score win in a long run of them. A week after Malcolm Roach sacked Patrick Mahomes on the final play to beat Kansas City, the defense closed out another game. This time Nik Bonitto made the play, against the same team Miller beat for a Super Bowl title.

Nik Bonitto and the Broncos are 7-2 and lead the AFC West going into the bye. They’ll have a week off before the second half of the season.