Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - Denver Broncos Offense Finding Emerging Playmakers For Bo Nix

Starting point is 00:00:00 Broncos country, the all 22 from the Broncos win against the Falcons on Sunday showcased at Devon Valle is emerging as Bo Nix's number two wide receiver. We'll talk about how he's growing in that role and much more here on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. You are Locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. What's happening in Broncos country? Welcome to another episode, Lockdown Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. I'm Cody Roark, Broncos reporter for Mile High Sports.

Starting point is 00:00:41 You could check on my daily written work over there, Mile High Sports.com. We just posted the Broncos All-22 Bo Nix film review over there on their YouTube page. You want to check that out after this. You can do just that here. I cover the team in person every day. No, Sarah Bedinger is he and his wife are expecting their fourth child. Obviously, I want to say congrats to Sarah and his family for that. But look, Broncos country, we've got a lot to break down here on today.

Starting point is 00:01:05 episode of the show is Raiders week now approaches, but you have to look back at what happened on Sunday before you can move forward to the next opponent. What we're going to do on today's episode of the show, we're going to take a look at the state of the AFC after week 11 around the national football league. What do the Broncos

Starting point is 00:01:21 playoff chances look like? Who do they have to account for behind them? We'll look at that. We'll also take a look at what we learned on the All-22 review with Nick Benito. The Broncos defense really making their mark against one of the NFL's most explosive offensive units on Sunday and Kirk Cousins, the Atlanta Falcons, and then obviously opening things up with the

Starting point is 00:01:39 offensive side of the ball. Devon Valet emerging as the number two receiver here for Bo Nix. A lot to watch. We'll break it down here on today's episode of the show, which is brought to you by our friends over there at Fanduil. Start this season with big return on Fandul and new customers can place a $5 bet, and you'll get started with $150 in bonus bets. If you win your first $5.5, visit Fanduil.com to get started. All right, Broncos country went back and watched the all 22 of the Broncos, 38 to six drubbing of the Atlanta Hawkins on Sunday. There was a lot that we learned from that game from the offense and defense.

Starting point is 00:02:10 We'll spend our first two segments of today's show really focusing on that. But really talking about the offense here once again for Bo Nix coming off of his most impressive performance so far of his rookie career, 28 of 33 passing, 85% completion percentage, 307 yards, four touchdown passes, no interceptions. And really, even the metrics are even saying that he has only had, I think, one turnover worthy play in the last four or five weeks. So that that right there. I mean, he's protecting the football, making good decisions with it. And when you go back and you watch the All-22, one thing we saw from Bo, just in terms of how comfortable he looked was the fact that he was capitalizing against man coverage. He capitalized against zone coverage. And a couple of weeks ago, this was after the Baltimore Ravens game. We asked Sean Peyton, what we've seen from Bo, like, what are some of the things he's doing well. And one of the things he attributed to Nix was that, hey, he's at the point now where he's understanding what the coverage is and he's knowing where to go, again. against certain coverages. He's knowing the right spot to attack.

Starting point is 00:03:08 And certainly, I think when you watch the All-22, you saw a lot of that here. Let's go to the little Jordan Humphrey touchdown pass that obviously Beau had his fourth of the day. And really on this, you kind of catch the Atlanta Falcon sleep a little bit because they go zone to one side. They go man on the other because of a motion play, right? Marvin Mims motions from the right side of the formation all the way to the left

Starting point is 00:03:31 where, hey, you got to worry about his speed on the wheel route. They had the cornerback, AJ Terrell stay over there. Cortland Sutton was lined up on the left side. Little Jordan Humphrey's lined up on the right side near the offensive tackle where he's just going to run that crossing pattern. But little Jordan does a great job getting behind the linebacker there who didn't get enough depth on his drop. AJ Terrell had to turn man coverage into Marvin Mims because of his speed presence there

Starting point is 00:03:57 on the outside. Cortland Sutton ran the backside crosser right there that drew not only just the safety over the top, but the backside corner that was initially covering little Jordan Humphrey, the coverage responsibilities just shifted. You had zone on that side, man on the other, and then it left little Jordan Humphrey wide open underneath on that crossing route for a wide open touchdown. And really, it was decisive with Bo when he had it. He just knew exactly where to go and he delivered a beautiful throw a little bit on the run

Starting point is 00:04:24 there to Little Jordan, who did the rest there and outran it. But Marvin's route design there coming from the motion and then turning it to a wheel and then turning it to an out route right there on the outside. It forced A.J. Terrell to play tight on his hip to where when little Jordan Humphrey caught the ball crossing across the middle of the field right there, Torell didn't see it or also maybe he could have went up there and tried to tackle him. That was a great design there from Marvin Mims. Once again, I think being able to showcase that, hey, his speed presence can be a little bit

Starting point is 00:04:53 of a decoy here for Sean Payton in the Broncos offense. They're finding ways to unlock Marvin a little bit, which is exciting. I mean, 14, 15 total snaps in this game, but Marvin made the most out of the those reps in which he was on the field right there. You love to see that. And then we're going to go to obviously the Devon, Valey 33-yard catch right before halftime. Bow-Nix's best throw that we've seen so far this season.

Starting point is 00:05:17 So Devon Valey's lined up to the offensive left side right there, right? The Falcons, they're playing in dime personnel, which is six defensive backs. Valy is just going to release vertically near, you know, kind of close to the hash, and then just break inside. And he gets right behind the nickel defender. he gets right behind the linebacker. Troy Franklin's to the left to the outside. He's running a vertical route, but that corner on that side,

Starting point is 00:05:39 he's playing underneath, right? He's in trail technique while you have Justin Simmons floating over the top there, protecting vertically. So then Velae's hitting that kind of slant pattern, that post pattern right there. Jesse Bates is supposed to roam over to the middle. He doesn't get there in time because he's worried about the other route on the other side, which is Cortland Sutton. And so now you have Velae catching that pass right there,

Starting point is 00:06:01 33 yards. But for Bo, I mean, you go back and you watch the end zone angle of the All-22, which once again, if you want to be able to have a visual representation of what I'm talking about, I posted the film review over there on Mile High Sports YouTube page. You can view it there. We can't post them officially on the YouTube page here, Lockdown Broncos for a lot of different purposes. But the one thing we liked is that Bates couldn't get over in time. Bo rips that throw really kind of over two defenders right in front of a third and just the other safety. Justin Simmons saw it, couldn't get there in time. So roping that throw, an NFL throw, by the way, in between four different defenders. That was big time, big boy football there from Bo Nix.

Starting point is 00:06:41 We loved to see that. That was a fantastic play. But I'll see for Velae. I mean, even early on, there was a second and 15 play for the Broncos early on in this game where Velae ran a slant pattern because the Broncos got backed up five yards, slant pattern again on second and 15. He beats the corner inside and just makes it and catches it. You know, in traffic, good body adjustment from him.

Starting point is 00:07:02 And I think that's where his size is going to be a factor here for the Broncos is that, hey, you know, he's big, but he's also quick for how big he is. And so for the body positioning there, he's catching it in traffic. He's holding onto it 14 yards on second and 15. So it brings up a third and one situation. And then he caught another in-breaking route where he caught it kind of adjusted. And he took a shot to the back of the head. Luckily, was okay.

Starting point is 00:07:26 That led to a 15-yard penalty on top of an eight-yard reception. that move the Broncos closer. And then Nate Atkins, obviously, cap that off with a touchdown there. Just impressive all across the board from Bo Nix and the Broncos offense from Sean Payton's play calling standpoint. And the way that he would understand, hey, this third in situation, right, third and long or third and short,

Starting point is 00:07:45 he knew how to attack the Falcons when they were in man. He knew how to attack the Falcons when they were in zone. And there were times where they would send five or six rushers, but they just couldn't get home. The Broncos offensive line had great protection all Sunday long in this game for Bo Nixon. In terms of the running back approach that Denver had, we all thought Audra Guestim was going to get more carries and touches here. Certainly, it wasn't him getting the first touches. It was Giovante Williams. Obviously, he had the hot hand,

Starting point is 00:08:11 nine carries, 59 yards, and even the passing game. But then Audrakeesma got a little bit more run late and had a fantastic play. I mean, we talk about a catch out of the backfield. He hurdles a defender first down, but Garrett Bulls gets flagged for a penalty. And look, I know a lot of people are like, oh, Bulls, why did you get flagged for the penalty? I like, I like where it came from. I don't like that it was, you know, a flag thrown. That's a little frustrating right there. Because on the same play, Quinn Miner's absolutely levels Matthew Judon. But the defender for the Falcons was holding on to Bo Nix a little bit too long after he had thrown it.

Starting point is 00:08:41 And Garrett took issue with that. And look, I think if it's a close game, you don't get mad at it. In a blowout fashion, you want to protect your quarterback. I like the instincts that Garrett had there. But unfortunately, it negated a really nice play from Audrake Estimate. So it looks like a true running back by committee approach here for the Broncos' offense. at least in week 11. We'll see how it continues to evolve here,

Starting point is 00:09:02 especially with the Las Vegas Raiders coming up. But I think one thing we'd gather from it on Sunday. Cortland Sutton's obviously going to be the top option here for Bone Knicks. But Devon Valey is emerging himself as the number two wide receiver, which is going to present some questions for what happens when Josh Reynolds returns to the mix, which could happen this Sunday against the Raiders. We'll continue our all 22 film review. What did we learn from the Broncos defense against the Atlanta Falcons and Kirk Cousins?

Starting point is 00:09:27 Nick Benito is making a. name for himself, trailing the NFL leading sack artist by two and a half sacks going into week 12. We'll break that down and much more here on today's episode, Lockdown Broncos. Today's Lockdown Broncos is brought to our friends over there at pre-alcohol probiotic drink by Z biotics. It's the world's first genetically engineered probiotic, and it was invented by Ph.D. scientists to tackle rough mornings after drinking. Here's how it works. When you drink, alcohol gets converted into a toxic byproduct in the gut, and it's this byproduct, not dehydration.

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Starting point is 00:12:06 performance against Kirk Cousins and an explosive Atlanta Falcons offense that has playmakers galore. How did the Broncos find a way to do just that? The All-22 gave us a lot of insight. We'll break that down. Thank you so much to all the everydayers and first listeners out there in Broncos country for making the show exactly what it is. We appreciate you so much here to everybody

Starting point is 00:12:26 in Broncos country. Now it's going to the defensive side of the ball here for Denver and Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons. I mean, once again, holding another offense to just fill goals at this point. Obviously, Kansas City last week, they scored one touchdown, but primarily it was field goals that the Broncos defense held Patrick Mahomes and company too. Well, now they did the same exact thing. They didn't allow a single touchdown all game. They held Kirk Cousins and the Falcons offense to fill goals. And I think Denver, early on, I felt like their response was pretty.

Starting point is 00:12:56 good, right? I think one of the bigger keys was the Falcons won the coin toss, right? They deferred to the second half to get the football. And so it's like, hey, they want to see Ken Bownix and the Broncos offense get something going. I kind of like it because Denver came out aggressive. They moved the ball well. And then you go up with a 7-0 lead for the defense. It's like, all right, hey, we don't have as much pressure on us right now because now we're not in a position where we need to get stops. Like obviously you have to. In a cliche way, you have to get stops. But we're not in a position where we have to try to get. stops or to force a turnover, we can play our style of game without the Falcons trying to dictate what we're going to do. And so going up 7-0 was big. The Broncos on that first drive, they did give a couple of chunk plays. Bejan Robinson, you know, did a really good job of being able to extend some plays wide and then hit the cup back to get five or six yards on a carry. But then really after that first drive, the Bronco was maybe a lot of couple of plays through the air, you know, there was that fourth down play that they had where Kirk Cousins was able to buy some time. Denver couldn't get enough pressure.

Starting point is 00:13:56 And to ask your corners to have to cover that long as a little problematic. And then obviously it was it was Drake London who made a terrific play through the air there. But the Broncos buckled down and then held them to a field goal. So it's like, all right, hey, you know, you're going to get some moments where you're going to get got. But Denver and key moments, they came up big when necessary. So let's take a look at a couple of players and things that stood out to me when watching the All-22. First off, I want to talk about Jaquam McMillan here because I feel like in the last couple of weeks, he's been a little bit of an easy target for Broncos fans.

Starting point is 00:14:26 And I think for people watching to say like, oh, you know, he's getting cooked. I think people look at the end result, okay, this receiver caught the ball. Well, this defender was near him. That means he got burnt. It wasn't necessarily the case here for Jaquan McMillan on Sunday. Jaquan's played really good football this year. And certainly, yeah, he gave up the touchdown last week to the Kansas City Chiefs. That's going to happen in the NFL.

Starting point is 00:14:46 But Jaquan is still playing really good football inside the slot, which is one of the tougher positions to play there. Jaquan, I think one of the things you have to understand is like, okay, hey, if Jacqueline is playing against the number two receiver, right, lined up in the nickel, if he's playing outside leverage, more than likely, he's going to have to be, he's playing zone in some capacity, right? Because inside is always the nearest path to being able to create separation. Now, it also depends on, okay, hey, are you on the boundary or are you on the field side?

Starting point is 00:15:14 The boundary is the shorter side of the field. The field side is where, hey, you have a little bit more grassy, right? So if the ball for the offense is on their right hash, the defensive left hash, then that right side hash for the defensive perspective is the field side. The boundary is the shorter side closest to the sideline there. Jaquan, I think, has played really well. So a lot of it is just contingent upon, okay, hey, zone, man, match. Like Denver will run a lot of match concepts as well, which, you know, there's zone match.

Starting point is 00:15:39 There's match that turns into man if, you know, your receiver goes a certain amount of depth vertically or inside. It just really depends on the formation, the number of receivers. so on and so forth. But he had a great third down pass breakup in this game that I was just, you know, hey, impressive. And on the play where Drake London did catch that one play, I mean, he's playing outside leverage. You know, at that point, you're expecting some help over the top there. And look, Drake London's quicker than I think a lot of people realize for his size. I was talking to Broncos players after the game. They said, hey, like he's big, he can move. He's got that explosive fast-twitch muscle fiber ability to shift gears at any moment. So when you are playing outside

Starting point is 00:16:16 leverage against the guy like him or if you're getting him on the outside, motioning inside and getting across, like there's going to be moments where he's going to have separation. And Kirk Cousins found him a couple of times. But Jaquine McMillan is still playing pretty good football here for the Broncos coming up and tackling. You know, he made a big play, like I said, a big third down pass breakup that really kind of put the Atlanta foul because the situation they had to punt on one field position opportunity. I'm not worried at all as I've seen a lot of people in Broncos country worry there.

Starting point is 00:16:44 So I think, you know, if you could take anything out of it from my background, as a DB. It's a former DB coach as well. Don't be worried about Jaquan. Jaquan's doing just fine. I want to highlight another cornerback that really stood up to me. Riley Moss, there was one play he had in coverage down the sideline against Darnell Mooney where, hey, Kirk Cousins tried to take a shot down field to him. And Riley did a great job because Mooney had a tiny bit of separation, but Riley did a good job. He got his hand on the hip, which is one thing we always coach you do, right? Get your hand on the hip, be able to get in phase.

Starting point is 00:17:11 And then it's all about timing it. And he time bringing his ballside hand forward perfectly as Mooney was going to catch the ball in his hands. He knocked it away incomplete. That is the type of stuff you want to see. Like I watch Riley Moss compete. I watch him try to come up in the run game. Like this is a guy who is just trying to embrace physicality, whether it's against the run, whether it's in, you know, he's a finesse guy that can run with dudes.

Starting point is 00:17:34 But he'll like to get his hands on guys as well in press coverage. And he likes to do during certain things. He brings the physicality element to it, which I think opposite of the past. Patrick Sertanasek, you need a guy who can do that. Riley had a terrific game, in my opinion. But let's talk about, I think all of that in the secondary was really made possible by guys like Nick Bonito, Zach Allen, John Franklin Myers, and Malcolm Roach, DJ Jones. I felt like the Broncos trenches were insane in Sunday's game.

Starting point is 00:18:01 Obviously, Nick Benito, two sacks. It puts him at nine on the season. He's two and a half back from the NFL leading sack artist in terms of Trey Hendrickson of the Cincinnati Bengals. and Benito obviously with one more sack on the season, we'll be able to hit double digits. First time ever in his career, he's been able to do that, even going back to the college level, but more so the first Bronco since Bradley Chubb and Von Miller in 2018

Starting point is 00:18:23 to be able to amount double digits sacks. And look, his pressure is there. He finds ways to come up with big plays there in big time moments, especially after one play, he didn't get, you know, he didn't get a holding call that should have been called. The ref had his hand on the flag, decided to take it off there because he saw it was a tackle for a loss, minus one.

Starting point is 00:18:39 and the next play, Nick Benito off the edge just throws down Kirk Cousins. I mean, Benito's playing big boy football this year. The Broncos have a gem on their hands there. Zach Allen, once again, I mean, this is a guy who's fighting through double teams and extra chips and his high motor is on display at a consistent rate. And he's dictating what happens inside the hole. Like he's not a guy that, you know, even he's getting double teamed. He's not a guy that's getting pushed back.

Starting point is 00:19:02 He's attacking and he's forcing an offensive line into a tough position because if they're focused on double teaming him there at the point of attack. and he's not getting pushed backwards. Now that's opening up your backside guy, a defensive tackle or a linebacker shooting through the gap to get home free, that I think is a secret formula to the success the Broncos defense has had this season. JFM obviously has been a man on a mission in terms of manhandling dudes, had a nice tackle for a loss in the backfield. Malcolm Roach came up with a sack and obviously Jonah Ellis got a sack as well.

Starting point is 00:19:33 This was a complete performance not only by the Broncos offense but by their defense and also by their special teams. They came up big and big time moments, and it was fun to watch. This was, I think if we go back at the end of this year, this is probably the most complete game that Broncos have played in quite some time in a handful of years in all three phases.

Starting point is 00:19:52 And it was against a playoff team in the Atlanta Falcons who is more than likely going to win the NFC South. I mean, you look at the NFC rankings right now. Sure, like there's teams that people don't perceive to be top heavy, but it's like at one point, the Washington commanders, they were six and two and they were listed as the number, six seed in the NFC playoffs. I mean, that's how competitive it is.

Starting point is 00:20:11 And right now the NFC West Division right there is very, very close in terms of trying to figure out who's going to win that division. It's not as clear cut as we thought was going to be at the 49ers. So there's just a lot of things here. Denver took care of business. They beat a good team in the Atlanta Falcons, even though, hey, Atlanta's defense isn't great. But that offense that they went against, that was big.

Starting point is 00:20:29 That's one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL that has big play, big yard, big scoring capabilities. And Denver limited to that, holding them to two total field goals. in that game here. But Broncos country, one thing we are going to dive into here is we get towards the end of our show. We're going to take a look at the state of the AFC. After week 11 around the NFL, what does the playoff picture look like? Who are some of the teams ahead of the Broncos?

Starting point is 00:20:50 And also, who do the Broncos have to pay attention to behind them that are trying to climb into the seventh wild card spot? We'll break that down to much more here on today's episode, Lockdown Broncos. Today's show is brought to our friends over there at Build Rewards. Listen up, renters. Ever feel like you're stuck in this loop of rent payments? just watching your money vanish into thin air. It's time to turn that rent game around and start earning some serious rewards. That's where built rewards comes in handy.

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Starting point is 00:22:05 today. As we jump in the fourth core action on today's episode, Locked on Broncos will highlight the state of the AFC real quick. I want to say thanks once again to everyone in Broncos country for tuning in making us your first listen of the day every single day. However you choose to do so, you make lockdown Broncos exactly what it is. And we're so grateful to have everyone there in Broncos country. When you want up-to-date information analysis, no hot takes, no clickbait, you want real

Starting point is 00:22:29 football breakdown. You get that here. Lockdown Broncos. You're not going to get that anywhere else. We appreciate you so much. for rocking with this year. All right, let's take a look at the state of the AFC after week 11 around the national football league, some dicey games. And honestly, I think a lot of Broncos fans are feeling it saying like, wow, if Denver didn't get the field goal block against Kansas City,

Starting point is 00:22:48 the vibe would be on another level, right? The high would be on another level right now. And I think certainly you look at what happened in week 11. The matchup of the week around the AFC was going to be Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs against Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills. And that matchup lived up to the hype. And Buffalo slaying the dragon a little bit in the regular season, the undefeated streak for the Kansas City Chiefs over. Now, even though that was the case, they still maintain the number one seed right now in the AFC.

Starting point is 00:23:14 The Buffalo Bills are right behind them at number two. And obviously, if KC drops another game, Buffalo, if they continue on the streak of winning, they will move ahead of them because they have the tiebreaker over Kansas City. We'll see how that kind of formulates here. The Pittsburgh Steelers right now leading the AFC North, they're the third seed right now, and they're coming off of a big-time victory

Starting point is 00:23:34 against the Baltimore Ravens, 18 to 16, where, hey, a lot of field goals were what kind of ended that game there. Obviously, the Steelers defense, we saw them in week two here in Denver, very, very good unit that has the answer for Lamar Jackson. It was a rough game for him. I just look at the AFC North, and I just look at the top three teams right now. The Steelers are in a position to continue going right now. And obviously, it went against the Ravens, gives them some leverage in terms of tiebreakers right now. And then behind them, you have the Houston Texans in number four. And as the time we're sitting down doing the show,

Starting point is 00:24:05 the Houston Texans have not yet played on Monday night football. They're playing the Dallas Cowboys. The Texans get Nico Collins back in the mix here for them. So we'll see if that helps off CJ Stroud, who's had a little bit of, you know, a little sophomore slump has had some struggles without him. The Los Angeles Chargers coming in as the fifth seed right now in the AFC.

Starting point is 00:24:23 They obviously won on Sunday and a Sunday night football thriller against Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals. And that was the one game looking. I understand it, Bronco's country. Last week, you guys were telling me, You can't root for the Chargers to win this game. And the only reason I echoed that, hey, in this game, you should, right? The Chargers schedule is going to get a little bit more trickier coming up here.

Starting point is 00:24:43 They're going to face some tough opponents. And certain the Bengals were tough. Obviously, their defense gives up a lot of explosive plays. But Joe Burroughs playing some of the best football right now in the NFL. If the Bengals were winning, he would be the clear-cut MVP right now. But that's not the case. But you needed the Chargers to win this game on Sunday because the Bengals, in my opinion, the most dangerous team behind the Broncos in terms of the playoff standings.

Starting point is 00:25:07 Right now, Cincinnati is not officially eliminated just yet. Denver's got to keep winning. You've got to hope that Cincinnati finds a way to lose because the Bengals are going to buy and then they're going to play the Pittsburgh Steelers. There's a lot of different things that, you know, we can factor in there. But Denver at that point, you're hoping can get two more wins before thereby to potentially going to that at eight and five. The Chargers obviously at the fifth seat, Denver's only a couple of games behind them.

Starting point is 00:25:29 I think Denver can catch up if they can go on their stretch of winning these games. the way that we think that they can. You have one more matchup against the Chargers specifically in L.A. And then you got a matchup against Joel Burrow and the Bengals later on the season. You close out week 18 against the Kansas City Chiefs. So at this point could be in a position maybe of rusting starters if they are in that spot for the one seat or if they have to play for the one seed, then you are going to see Patrick Mahomes and company in that game. That's a little bit of ways away out here.

Starting point is 00:25:53 But we're focusing on the bigger picture here. Raven's at number six right now, considering they just lost, but they're dropping down a little bit. And now you have to worry about maybe some of the other teams that are there. That's where maybe, hey, Cincinnati, what, you know, are they dead? Are they in the water? They're on life support. They're not dead just yet. But for the Broncos right here, let's take a look at this.

Starting point is 00:26:10 They're the seventh seed. And obviously, the win on Sunday was huge. Denver still has a two and four AFC conference record, which is definitely a little bit of a rough point when you factor in where the Ravens are at right now, just one seed ahead of them right now at the sixth spot. They got, obviously, the Steelers, they're more likely going to win that division, barring any kind of setback there. They should maintain that spot as the three seed.

Starting point is 00:26:31 and obviously record depending on it where they alternate between them and Buffalo and maybe Kansas City for those spots there. Kansas City still has to play the Steelers on Christmas Day. So there's a lot of moving that can still happen here in the NFL, but all eyes are here on the Broncos. And what do they have to do to maintain that spot on the seventh seed, right? We've all said it. The Broncos make the playoffs this year, that is icing on the cake regardless of what happens.

Starting point is 00:26:54 If they get in the postseason, even if they lose, this season would be a huge success. And even if they get to the playoffs, that right there was just the cherry on top of the ice cream Sunday that you have there. Right now, I think when you look at teams behind the Broncos right now that we have to keep an eye on as the schedule continues to go. We mentioned the Bengals. The loss on Sunday night football to the Chargers drops them to four and seven. That puts them as the 10th seed right now in the NFL.

Starting point is 00:27:19 The Miami Dolphins are the ninth seats sitting there with a four and six record and they came off of a win this past Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders. They're going to be an interesting team to watch just two games behind the Broncos at this point. The Indianapolis Colts, they're the 8th seed. They're coming off of a win against the New York Jets on Sunday. They're 5 and 6. And it sets things up interestingly from an AFC perspective here

Starting point is 00:27:42 because when you look at the Bengals next two games, obviously them at 4 and 7, they got to buy this upcoming week. Then they play the Pittsburgh Steelers and that defense that we know that they have there. That is going to be tough. Like they're going to try to get after Joe Burrow. That's going to be an interesting game to watch. And I was watching even on Sunday night.

Starting point is 00:27:58 Joe Burrow was getting hit left and right by the Chargers defense. The Steelers one is going to be a tough one for them, but they're going to be able to come into that game healthy. A little bit refreshed from the by week. You have to hope they continue to losing games. I think if they lose one or two more games, they are officially done in the playoffs. We'll see how things go. You look at the Miami Dolphins, their next two games, this is where it gets a little interesting here because, look, they're going to play the New England Patriots who you never know what you're going to get with them. Obviously, defensively, they play things tied a little bit.

Starting point is 00:28:26 Offensively with Drake May. I mean, they've got some flashes with him. I like Drake May there, but he doesn't have to have. have playmakers really to throw the football to it. It's weird right now in New England. So that might be a winnable game there for the dolphins. And now, obviously, if they were able to win, that would put them at five and six. And then they played the Green Bay Packers, who've been kind of playing with a little bit of fire as of late in the next two weeks.

Starting point is 00:28:46 They've been playing with fire a little bit. They've been in some close games. And they were able to just, I mean, they were the benefactor of a block kick the way that the Broncos were against Kansas City. Caleb Williams had a terrific game for them this past Sunday. And then you lose on a block field goal right there. Chicago's bear fans know exactly how it feels how the Broncos felt last week. So that's tough. So you never know what you're going to get from that Packers team against the dolphins.

Starting point is 00:29:07 The Indianapolis Coltsal, this one is going to be interesting because unfortunately they drew the card of having the Detroit Lions this upcoming Sunday, which I don't think a lot of people envision them beating the Lions, especially with how the Lions are rolling right now. The Lions right now look like the best team in football. They are well-oiled machine offensively, and they're dropping 50 burgers on teams, 40 burgers on teams left and right.

Starting point is 00:29:28 So luckily for the Broncos, the Colts, they'll run into the Lions. And look, they squeaked it out against a Jets team that is just abysmal. You know, Anthony Richardson found a way to run for a touchdown late in that game that gave them the lead. So they're in a good spot right there, but not against the Detroit Lions. And then two weeks time, they'll play the New England Patriots. Then they go on their buy week. They have the same buy week as the Denver Broncos. So both the Broncos and the Colts going into that week 15 matchup.

Starting point is 00:29:54 So in week 14, they both have a buy. Week 15, they open up coming out of the buy, playing against the Broncos. And so that'll be big games here. Obviously, for Denver, you look at the teams that are trailing behind the Broncos right now inside of the AFC playoff picture. And that'll wrap up the state of the AFC at their week 11 around the National Football League. Week 12 is approaching the Broncos. Have a road matchup this week against the Las Vegas Raiders. And here's what you can expect all week long here, lockdown Broncos.

Starting point is 00:30:21 We're going to get into our mailbag episode on tomorrow's edition of the show. You're also going to get the AFC squad. episode as well where we take it around the AFC with all of our hosts here on the Lockdown Podcast Network. And then Thursday, your boy Q and myself are going to sit down as it's a crossover with the Locked on Raiders podcast, breaking

Starting point is 00:30:38 down Sunday's game. Can the Broncos go in and snap that losing streak that they have in Las Vegas? Can that streak end? Bill of Nick Sean Payton, have their eye on that. You'll get that much more here on Lockdown Broncos, your team every day.

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