Mile High Report
The Denver Broncos are one of the hottest teams in the National Football. After six straight victories, the Broncos are now 7-2 on the season and sit atop the AFC West. This week, its divisional rivalry game hosting the Las Vegas Raiders in primetime on Thursday Night Football. Let’s take a deeper look at Denver’s opponent this Thursday and what they need to do in order to achieve victory.
2024 Las Vegas Raiders Season Review
The Antonio Pierce era was short-lived after the Raiders finished 4-13 last season at the bottom of the AFC West. On offense, the Raiders were 29th in points scored and 27 in yards gained. With respect to defense, they were 25th points allowed and 15th in yards against.
2025 Las Vegas Raiders Offseason Additions and Departures
It was a complete coaching staff and front office upheaval for the Raiders this past offseason. Tom Telesco was replaced by John Spytek. With Pierce fired, the Raiders were in the market for a new head coach. They decided to bring in Pete Carroll to try and get things going in the right direction.
To replace Gardner Minshew and Aiden O’Connell at starting quarterback, the Raiders traded for Geno Smith, who knows Carroll’s offense from their time together in Seattle. Given the regime change, it’s no surprise the Raiders had a lot of roster movement. A lot of cuts were made on top of as nearly a dozen players opting for greener pastures. It’s quite clear a lot of retooling needs to be done in order for the Raiders to be competitive in the AFC West.
In the 2025 NFL Draft, the Raiders had 11 selections with seven of those being in the Top 150 picks. Spytek is certainly hoping his first draft will be the foundations for future success. Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty was their top selection. They continued to bolster their offense and selected TCU wide receiver Jack Bech in the second round. With their third-round pick, they added Iowa State corner Darien Porter to bolster a secondary that struggled mightily in ‘24.
Offensive X-Factor: Tight end Brock Bowers
The Raiders are a struggling team but do have some talent on offense worthy of praise. Rookie running back Ashton Jeanty undoubtedly has all the tools to be one of the NFL’s most dynamic running backs. He hasn’t hit his stride yet, but still has over 600 all-purpose yards and six touchdowns this season.
At tight end, they have a second-year player that is a nightmare to gameplan against and one of the league’s most dynamic playmakers with the ball in his hands. That’s Brock Bowers. Last year as a rookie, Bowers had 112 catches, 1,194 yards and 5 touchdowns. He was Pro-Bowler, first-team All-Pro, and was in the running for Offensive Rookie of the Year.
He has been limited to five games this year due to injury, but last week’s 12 catch, 127 yard and 3 touchdown performance against the Jacksonville Jaguars proves he is...
