DENVER _ Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul offered a promise to reporters Friday afternoon as the group walked away from his locker.
"Sunday night, guys," Pierre-Paul said, "get ready for a game."
Hard to believe even Pierre-Paul knew the Giants were about to deliver the kind of performance that they ultimately did.
Pierre-Paul registered three sacks and Janoris Jenkins added a Pick 6 as the Giants jumped on top of the Broncos and never trailed, pulling off the upset for their first victory, 23-10, at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.
The Giants (1-5) entered as 13.5-point favorites in a game that Giants coach Ben McAdoo declared "there's nobody giving us a chance in hell to go win this ball game."
They took a 17-3 lead into halftime _ their biggest advantage since Week 12 of last season in the fourth quarter of the eventual victory over the Browns in Cleveland.
The Broncos (3-2) had won 15 of their last 18 home games in prime time.
Three wide receivers, including star Odell Beckham Jr. and veteran Brandon Marshall, have undergone season-ending surgery. Six more players were already listed out for the game, including Olivier Vernon, defensive captain Jonathan Casillas, Weston Richburg and another starting wide receiver, Sterling Shepard, before the Giants got on the plane to come here.
They also dealt with the fallout from the Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie suspension and the indication from both inside and outside the locker room that McAdoo was in danger of losing the locker room.
With the pressure admittedly on, McAdoo got the Giants to play inspired ball and they delivered their best two quarters of the season, punctuated by an Eli Manning touchdown pass to Evan Engram and a Pick 6 for All-Pro cornerback Jenkins, who jumped a route and intercepted a Trevor Siemian pass late in the second quarter.
With Peyton Manning in attendance, Eli Manning got his first win of the year.
Orleans Darkwa picked up the first 100-yard game of his career.
"We've got a great opportunity. There's nobody giving us a chance in hell to go win this ball game," McAdoo said Friday morning. "People don't think we can score without 13 [Beckham]. They think our defense has lost its stinger. Special teams isn't important in the whole locker room. So we're gonna find out what we're made out of on a big stage. And I think we have a good football team."
One of the big stories of the night was how good the Giants' offensive line played against Broncos All-Pro and Super Bowl 50 MVP Von Miller.
Justin Pugh deserves a lot of credit for keeping Miller in check. He kicked outside to right tackle yet again and held Miller off the stat sheet for most of the night.
Zero sacks until early in the fourth when he beat Pugh with a bull rush, but it was a remarkable performance by Pugh and the beleaguered offensive line.
The Giants also got a vintage effort from Jenkins, who forced a fumble early in the fourth quarter and returned an interception for a touchdown late in the first half.
