Mile High Report
Here’s where the Denver Broncos are showing up in this week’s power rankings around the NFL.
It’s been a few weeks since I’ve done a pulse check on the Denver Broncos standings within the NFL rankings around the web. After their three-game win streak, they were topping around in the high teens. However, they’ve added another two out of three in the win column and are now firmly in the AFC playoff picture.
Reviewing these rankings, I came to the conclusion that people at the national level in the media have no idea what to make of this football team. One outlet, Sporting News, even dropped them a spot after beating the Carolina Panthers. If I’m being honest with myself, that doubt is understandable. They can silence doubters greatly with a strong couple of games over the next two weeks against the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs.
Here is where the Broncos are ranking around the NFL.
Rookie quarterback Bo Nix is showing progress, but the jury is still out on whether Russell Wilson or Jarrett Stidham would have fared just as well with the Broncos’ dominant defense. Franklin-Myers, acquired in a draft weekend trade with the Jets, has allowed others along the defensive front to switch to assignments that suit them better. Zach Allen, having an All-Pro-worthy season at defensive end, has credited Franklin-Myers’ arrival as facilitating a big part of his own impact. The Broncos have 12 players with at least half of a sack and the highest pass-rush win rate in the league (55.8%). — Jeff Legwold
Denver is 20th in the league in scoring (21.63 ppg), but it is 30th in first downs per drive (1.4). That means a lot of short possessions, which is putting a lot of pressure on quarterback Bo Nix. The rookie was good Sunday, completing 28 of 37 passes for 284 yards and three touchdowns as the Broncos had a season-high 400 yards. Denver has scored 61 points in the last two weeks.
Sean Payton has this team at 5-3 as they head to Baltimore for a huge game with the Ravens. Bo Nix is getting better by the week.
Broncos (No. 16; 5-3): David Tepper must have thrown a drink on Sean Payton at some point.
The Broncos once again took care of business against a lesser opponent, but these next few games will be the real test for whether this team has legs. Back-to-back road games against the Ravens and Chiefs loom, and they’re followed by a home game vs. first-place Atlanta. All eyes turn to Bo Nix, who is coming off a career-high 284 pass yards against Carolina, and he almost set that mark by halftime, with 220. He also had three TDs passing and one more on the ground, and Nix took just two sacks in 39 dropbacks. The...
