ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Michael Bandy is a 5-foot-10 dynamo who once gave up football for rugby, was cut nine times as a pro and waited five NFL seasons to reach the end zone.
A former FCS star at San Diego, Bandy ran an underneath crossing route, hauled in Bo Nix's pass and turned up the sideline to scoot into the end zone, igniting the Denver Broncos' 34-26 win over the Green Bay Packers last weekend.
So, what was it like to finally hit pay dirt at age 28?
“I can honestly say I don't really remember, like I blacked out,” Bandy said. “It was just so much emotion. I've been in the league five years now and it's been a while since I've scored a touchdown, since college.”
Bandy had to watch the replay on his phone.
“So, I couldn't tell you exactly what it feels like,” he said, “but it was every emotion and it was pretty cool.”
Nix and wide receiver Courtland Sutton were so excited for Bandy that they chased him into the end zone. Both halted and made a beeline for the ball that Bandy had dropped as he stomped across the orange-painted end zone, roaring as much as any fan.
“Yeah, we were able to get the football. Courtland and Bo grabbed it and brought it to me, which was pretty cool,” Bandy said of the memento, now safely back home.
With rookie Pat Bryant (hamstring) ruled out, the Broncos needed to elevate a wide receiver from their practice squad in Week 15 and it was somewhat surprising it was Bandy and not new acquisition Elijah Moore.
After Marvin Mims Jr. went to the sideline with a stinger early in the game, Bandy got his chance and made the most of it.
“It was supposed to be Mims' play,” coach Sean Payton said. “There was a minute when he was out, and so Bandy jumped in because he knows every position and ends up catching Mims’ touchdown.”
Bandy, who carries 190 pounds on his compact frame, said the only way he's been able to keep his NFL dream alive is to be versatile: “That's the easiest way to get on the field is just knowing what to do at all the different spots. The more you can do, the better.”
Payton took pride in seeing Bandy score his first touchdown.
“He's played five years in this league. He’s been in 12 games,” Payton said. “Each week, I say to the offensive guys, ‘We have to find a way to get him up.’ He does so many things well, and that was his first touchdown. That was pretty cool to see because his journey is different. ...
“Five years is a long time. He embraces the role, and like I said, he can go in at any position and not flinch. That’s not easy considering all the formations and plays we have.”
Nix called Bandy's score special.
“I think that was awesome for several reasons,” he said. “Mike has not necessarily had the easiest road to the NFL. He hasn’t had the most opportunities to have a situation like that, but I think it goes to show that with a little bit of grit, a little bit of determination, you can do what you put your mind to.”
What made Nix and the rest of Bandy's teammates so excited for him was knowing how hard to works at practice and on the scout team.
“For Michael, it’s just awesome to see. I know he’s had a very long road, a lot of ups and a lot of downs, a lot of times unfortunately getting cut and then having to fight his way back out. He just continues to do it with a smile on his face, has a great attitude,” Nix said. “I think every team needs a Bandy, and I think we have the best one.”
The Broncos (12-2), who host Jacksonville (10-4) on Sunday, activated G Ben Powers (biceps) from injured reserve to their 53-man roster Saturday. Powers started 39 consecutive games for Denver before he was injured in Week 5 at Philadelphia. The Broncos also elevated QB Sam Ehlinger and S Delarrin Turner-Yell from their practice squad and signed G Calvin Throckmorton to the practice squad after he was waived earlier this week.
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Denver Broncos' Michael Bandy celebratesw his touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)
Denver Broncos' Bo Nix celebrates after throwing a touchdown to Michael Bandy during the first half of an NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United States expanded its airstrike campaign against Iran early Friday by increasingly hitting bridges, part of President Donald Trump's threats to start striking infrastructure to pressure Tehran to ease its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz. Iran launched new missile attacks against U.S.-allied nations in the Middle East and warned that its attacks would escalate.
In Qatar, authorities warned the public to take shelter as a barrage of Iranian missiles targeted the nation. People heard explosions overhead as air defenses fired to intercept the missiles.
Qatar is a key mediator with Pakistan in trying to reach an end to the Iran war. But talks have broken down over Iran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran earlier targeted Bahrain and Kuwait over U.S. airstrikes hitting bridges in the Islamic Republic overnight.
The interim ceasefire agreed to last month has collapsed, and the region has endured days of back-and-forth attacks by the U.S. and Iran as they battle for control of the strait. Iranian officials say U.S. strikes have killed more than 35 people and wounded over 300 others, with new casualties reported in Friday's strikes.
When the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Iran on Feb. 28, Tehran effectively closed the strait to shipping traffic, a move that sent the price of oil soaring and gave Iran major leverage in negotiations.
Speaking in a primetime address to the American public, Trump insisted the war was going well.
"We are likewise winning big in Iran, and you will see the fruits of that labor very, very shortly," Trump said.
Col. Ebrahim Zolfaghari, a spokesperson for the Iranian military’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, earlier threatened that Iran could launch widespread attacks on “all the infrastructure in the region” if the U.S. acted on Trump 's repeated warnings that America could hit Iranian bridges and power plants.
“Under no circumstances and in no way will we allow America, as a foreign and extraregional country, to interfere in the Strait of Hormuz,” he added. “This is Iran’s invincible red line.”
The U.S. airstrikes hit bridges overnight into Friday in Iran's southern Hormozgan province, killing at least seven people, Iranian state television reported. The attacks hit Bandar Khamir, a city on Iran's coast on the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian state media said the U.S. strikes Thursday hit around Tehran and Semnan province, home to Iran’s ballistic missile production and space program.
Trump has returned in recent days to his threats to target Iranian power stations and bridges to try to compel Iran to loosen its hold on the strait, through which about a fifth of all oil and natural gas once passed in peacetime. The U.S. also reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports to halt its shipments of crude oil.
Week-to-week cargo shipments through the strait dropped by almost a quarter at the beginning of the month, according to Maritime data firm Lloyd’s List Intelligence. And that was before the recent surge in tit-for-tat attacks.
Given the risks, some oil shippers are transiting the strait with their location devices turned off, but many are just staying put, Lloyd’s said Thursday. A growing amount of the region’s energy is being shipped through pipelines, but not nearly enough to offset the decline in shipping through the strait.
U.S. forces have redirected three commercial vessels trying to run the blockade, disabled one that did not comply and boarded another “to ensure full compliance,” the U.S. military's Central Command said in a post on X.
Associated Press writers Abby Sewell in Beirut, Mae Anderson in New York and Christopher Weber in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
Vehicles drive by a billboard reading in English, "Who is D nexT one?" and "#lindseygraham," referring to late U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham and using the capital letters "D" and "T" in an apparent play on the initials of U.S. President Donald Trump, in downtown Tehran, Iran, Thursday, July 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A man waves an Iranian flag beneath a billboard reading in English, "Who is D nexT one?" and "#lindseygraham," referring to late U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham and using the capital letters "D" and "T" in an apparent play on the initials of U.S. President Donald Trump, in downtown Tehran, Iran, Thursday, July 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A billboard depicting U.S. President Donald Trump lying on what appears to be a coffin and bearing anti-Trump messages, including the phrase "We Kill Trump," is seen at Islamic Revolution Square in downtown Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Three boys play in the shallow waters of the Strait of Hormuz, as a plume of smoke rises from an explosion in the background, off Bandar Abbas, Iran, Monday, July 13, 2026. (Razieh Poudat/ISNA via AP)
