The high-volume complaints about his drops, the lingering questions about his effort and a sudden disappearance among most lists of the NFL’s top receivers were pent up inside Demaryius Thomas.

And with one authoritative spike of the football, the Broncos’ all-pro receiver released his emotions in a jubilant celebration Sunday during the victory in New Orleans.

The moment came after Thomas’ “grown man” touchdown catch on an end-zone fade route. It was a 50-50 ball that quarterback Trevor Siemian threw on third-and-goal to Thomas, who outmuscled Saints cornerback Delvin Breaux, who was well positioned. After the catch, Thomas looked back at Breaux with a defiant glance as if to make sure Breaux knew what happened.

“I hear it all the time, people always on my back about quitting or not doing stuff,” said Thomas, who finished with a team-high eight catches for 87 yards. “Then first time in the Superdome, lights are real bright, whenever I got a chance, I made a play. I did whatever I had to do for my team, our offense, to keep us rolling.”

His spike certainly caught the attention of his teammates.

Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders “is always telling him he can’t dance. So if you can’t dance, I guess you gotta spike it,” Siemian said, laughing. “The ball bounced pretty high, though. That thing almost exploded.”

Receiver Bennie Fowler added: “He can’t dance. He has no rhythm. The only thing he can do is the shoulder shake.”

Dancing moves aside, Broncos coach Gary Kubiak said it was easily Thomas’ best game of the season. It earned him the Broncos’ weekly offensive MVP selection.

His best catch of the game was a one-handed grab over the middle to keep a second-quarter drive alive. It was the type of play that inspired Denver to give Thomas a five-year, $70 million contract before the 2015 season.

“I take pride in that, because I feel like I have some of the strongest hands in the league,” said Thomas, who leads the Broncos with 678 yards receiving, 13th in the NFL, and five touchdowns.

Thomas was Siemian’s go-to receiver on third down. Six of Thomas’ eight catches resulted in a first down.

“He’s capable of taking the team on his shoulders, and you could see some of that in him,” Kubiak said. “He is a captain, and when he plays with that type of emotion and that type of fire and he’s making those plays, usually good things are happening for our team.”

The Broncos’ offensive struggles have taken center stage this season, but their subtle successes show hints they might be able to get out of their funk. In Thomas and Sanders, Denver has the only receiving duo with each in the top 16 in yards receiving.

“I like to see D.T. bring that spark, not just from his playmaking ability but from emotional boost,” Sanders said. “We work off each other. We’re trying to be the catalysts of the offense. We want to do more than what people think we’re capable of.”

Consistent producer

Despite a down year for the offense and Demaryius Thomas statistically, the Broncos receiver is on pace for his fifth straight 1,000-yard season. A look at how Thomas has performed through his first 10 games of every season since he became a full-time starter in 2012.