Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - DESTINY: Denver Broncos Super Bowl Race CONTINUES As Bills Stand In Way
Episode Date: January 16, 2026The Denver Broncos Super Bowl race continues on Saturday as they face the Buffalo Bills, who stand in their way. Sean Payton described the drive to succeed as being on the race track, but Denver isn't... ready to get off yet. Bo Nix, Jaleel McLaughlin, RJ Harvey, Patrick Surtain II, Dre Greenlaw, Riley Moss, and Talanoa Hufanga headline our key players to watch, while dominating the time of possession offensively is one of the most important keys to victory. Join Cody Roark and Sayre Bedinger for their final Denver Broncos vs. Buffalo Bills NFL Playoff Preview. Cody Roark is a credentialed beat reporter for Mile High Sports and covers the Broncos daily in person. Sayre Bedinger is the site expert for Predominantly Orange. Both bring Broncos Country the most in-depth and objective coverage of the Denver Broncos. WANT MORE DAILY DENVER BRONCOS CONTENT?For all of the latest Denver Broncos news today -- Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…🎧 https://link.chtbl.com/LOBroncos?sid=YouTube Locked On NFL League-Wide: Every Team, Fantasy, Draft & More🎧 https://linktr.ee/LockedOnNFL Follow on Twitter: @CodyRoarkNFL and @SayreBedingerFollow the show on Twitter: @LockedOnBroncos Everydayer Club If you never miss an episode, it’s time to make it official. Join the Locked On Everydayer Club and get ad-free audio, access to our members-only Discord, and more — all built for our most loyal fans.Click here to join -- https://lockedonbroncos.supercast.com/ Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Ultimate QBUltimate QB is totally free to play, has no ads, and works 100% offline — perfect for when you want to sneak in a quick game or two on the go. Just head over to http://ULTIMATE-QB.COM. FanDuelToday's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. FanDuel is officially in Playoff Mode. Every game day during the NFL playoffs, FanDuel is giving customers even more ways to get in on the action. Visit Fanduel.com to get started. PrizePicksDownload the PrizePicks app today and use code LOCKEDONNFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup.Click Here: https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONNFL GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime. RobinhoodTrade Every Play with Robinhood. Now available across the U.S. Download the Robinhood app now to begin.Futures and cleared swaps trading involves significant risk and is not appropriate for everyone. Event contracts are offered by Robinhood Derivatives, LLC., a registered futures commission merchant and swap firm QuoMake this the year where no opportunity — and no customer — slips away.Try Quo for free plus get 20% off your first 6 months when you go to http://Quo.com/lockedonnfl. GustoTry Gusto today at http://gusto.com/lockedonNFL and get three months free when you run your first payroll. Home ChefFor a limited time, Home Chef is offering my listeners 50% off your first box, free shipping, and free dessert for life. Just go to http://HomeChef.com/LOCKEDON. IndeedListeners of this show get a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to help give your job the premium placement it deserves at http://Indeed.com/lockedonnfl. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcript
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The race in the NFL playoffs continues.
And for the Denver Broncos, they're not ready to get off the track just yet.
You are Locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast.
Part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day.
What is up?
Broncos country playoff weekend is almost here.
As your Denver Broncos are set to take on the Buffalo Bills on Saturday.
Welcome into a brand new episode, Lockdown Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast,
part of the Lockdown Podcast Network.
the number one sports podcast network in the country.
And that's all thanks to all of you every day is out there in Broncos country.
Thanks for making us your first listen, however you choose to do so.
Sarah and I, we got a lot to break down on our final game preview of Denver versus Buffalo.
Well, we heard from Sean Payton on his final day of practice throughout the week.
And he was very introspective ahead of Saturday's playoff game.
We'll talk about some of the key points that he made.
Plus, we'll go through our players to watch why Bo Nix and several new additions need to have a big game on Saturday.
day against Buffalo, and then we'll round things out with our keys to victory and bold predictions.
Could the Broncos run all the way to the AFC championship?
You'll get all of that here on today's episode of the show brought to you by the Game Time app.
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I'm Cody Rourke, credential Broncos reporter from all high sports.
Join as always by Sarah Bedinger, site expert over there predominantly orange.com here.
Sarah, very introspective, Sean Payton and somewhat reflective of how they have gotten to this point where he comes to Denver in 2023.
You have to deal with all these questions.
You know, he was fresh out of the job.
You know, he missed coaching.
He got out of the Fox booth to come to Denver.
And then here we are two years later.
The Broncos have navigated what was one of the lowest points in franchise history.
And now, I'd say they argue that one of their highest.
And in three years, it's crazy.
Sean Payton's done a terrific job with that.
It's amazing, Cody, and especially because I love the question that he was asked
and you referenced it in the show open about being back in high stakes moments after
spending a year working for Fox Sports.
I mean, I think that it's even more so now with like Mike Tomlin stepping away from the
Pittsburgh Steelers.
And, you know, Sean, after having that long run with the New Orleans Saints.
And what I love that he said, I'm just going to read.
read his quote verbatim because I think that so many of us can relate to this.
He said, we're all sold on what retirement's going to be like, you know, on a lake somewhere
with a fishing pole, some company's selling you.
He said, it's a little overrated that way relative to having a purpose and getting up.
And I think that's such a relatable comment to me, you know, like when you, you dream of,
oh my gosh, I get to have all this time off.
I get to, you know, go get the fishing pole and go get on the lake and go retire and go.
enjoy my life. But you know what Sean said about waking up and having a purpose every single day,
this is what you live for. If you're the, if you're a football coach, if you're a football player,
you live for these big moments. And for fans of the team, this is what it's all about. We have not
seen this in 10 years. A home playoff game for the Denver Broncos. I mean, it's understandable to
be introspective ahead of a game like this because the regular season was its own beast that you
had to conquer. Now the new journey starts. And I love Sean Payton.
perspective there. Yeah, and look, I also think you can make the comparison to, you know,
he was talking about the proverbial race track of life, so to speak. And in that team meeting,
he was talking to players about, you know, there's going to be a time where every single one
of you, at some point is going to have to get off that track. And he says that time is not right now.
I think you can make the same analogy here for them just being in the NFL playoffs, right?
Everybody right now is on this track to the Super Bowl and they're going around and around and
it's trying to figure out who's going to get there, right? And at some point, teams have to exit,
or cars have to exit the racetrack.
Denver wants to stay on the track.
They want to keep the rubber to the road here, so to speak here in this matchup against the Buffalo Bills.
So I felt like there was some really great insight there from Sean.
Once again, Sean, you know, people I think sometimes take for granted just how much he wants things, right?
And how much success he wants this team to have.
Like he is maniacal about the little details.
Like those are the things I don't think get highlighted.
enough, you know, we see, you know, the, the idea of like, hey, I'm going to be this play caller.
You know, we're going to try to get the offense going.
But like, Sean, I don't even know what the right word is.
He perseverates, I would say, on the things that aren't working.
And he does whatever he can to go through and try to fix it.
Like Red Zone, he was talking about the Red Zone.
We know that it's been a problem here for Denver.
And he brought up the notion.
He said, I got two years of tape of us in the Red Zone here.
And I probably wasn't very fun in the Red Zone meeting that we had the other night.
but he's trying to find any way to give this team the edge and to be able to pass that on to the players.
I have so much respect for that.
You know, I grew up football.
Football was my life.
I played it.
I coached it.
I've been around guys like that.
And I understand it.
And I just, once again, it brings me back to my own personal things that I have with this game of football.
But I think as it relates to this team here, Sarah, Sean also talked about play calling, right?
Because one of the bigger areas of EMSIS this week has to be running the football.
ball against this Buffalo Bill's defense.
And at times all season long, we've sat here on this show previewing game saying,
hey, is this the week, the run game gets consistently going.
This is the week.
This is the week.
Well, here we are more than 18 weeks after the fact.
There have been some games where Denver's done a really good job with it, right?
We're talking about the consistency factor.
And Sean even said, too, as a play caller, he has to remind himself something sometimes.
And when it comes to being sharp, I think the one thing that he said is, you know,
they always say like when you're older it's probably not wise to drive in there and he said for me my job is
I get older and evolve as a play caller I need to be quick I still need to make sure that I'm sharp with that
and we see that still kind of being a work in progress here so kind of a little bit of a vulnerable
Sean Payton to kind of open up on that yeah it was and it was great to hear because I think a lot of
times what we missed like during the Russell Wilson era especially was a lack of that self-awareness
or at least just like hey come come back to
to our level for a moment. Come at least like empathize with us. We don't want to hear
necessarily the rah, raw stuff. We don't want to hear like it's just another,
another game, another game in front of us. Like I want to hear this kind of stuff. I want to
hear the kind of stuff that's like, man, this means something to me. Like that, that perspective
of giving that to the players, like as somebody who leads other people, Cody, and you know this too,
there's a line from Star Wars. That's one of my favorites of all time, Cody. And it's Obey
and Quigong Jin at the beginning of Phantom Menace, right?
He's like, Master Yoda says we're supposed to be mindful of the future.
And Quigon's like, but not at the expense of the moment, right?
And so you don't look past anything.
You don't look ahead to anything.
You embrace where you're at because right now is all you've got.
Someday you'll have a chance to look back on everything.
And you don't want to regret not taking in this entire moment.
It's not just being happy to be there.
Like last year, it's being so overly,
extra prepared on all the small details. That's why he's saying we had a red zone meeting that they
probably didn't like me after the fact and I'm going to go do more work after this, right?
Because the Broncos have struggled there in the second half of the season. There's no question.
So I love this sort of introspective, you know, way that Sean Payton is going about attacking this,
this moment as opposed to just another game. That's not what I want to hear. I don't want to hear
that it's just another game. It's not just another game. This is an opportunity to,
your legacy for every single player out there for Peyton himself.
And we know what's at stake for Peyton.
He could become the first head coach ever to win a Super Bowl with two different NFL
franchises.
There's so much more at stake here than just another game.
And I love that he's taking it to this level.
I think people underestimate how much that actually drives Sean to be able to do that,
right?
To go to a new place, to win a Super Bowl, to be the first to do it.
Because you know what it does for Sean winning another Super Bowl?
it cements his legacy as a Hall of Fame coach, essentially.
And that is what drives him.
On top of the success, but there's so many other things that factor into it.
This is a guy who I feel like could never get away from football.
Just being around Sean, I get that sense from him.
And when you can see that as a player, if you see how he talks in those meetings,
you start to feel that as well, right?
And look, the idea like everyone's motivations are certainly different.
But I can tell you this, being inside that locker room,
those guys are all locked into the message.
Whatever it is that Sean Payton has said,
they are focused, they're locked in,
and they are ready to rock and roll here.
And hopefully we see the best Broncos effort
that we've seen so far.
And Saturday's game against Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills.
But coming up next, Sarah and I are going to tell you
why Bonix is a handful of new additions are players to watch
in Saturday's game against the builds if they want to win.
And what these guys have to do,
we'll get into all that and more on today's episode of the show.
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If the Denver Broncos are going to find redemption against the Buffalo
bills in the divisional round of the playoffs,
Bo Nix and his playmakers,
as well as some of the newest additions of this team
are going to have to come through in a big way.
Cody and I are going to tell you all about it on today's episode,
Locked on Broncos.
And Broncos Country,
thank you so much for making us your first listen of the day every single day.
As Sean Payton's getting a little introspective,
you know, Cody and I like to do that here as well.
and just want to take a second to say thank you to all of you for rocking with us from the off season through the regular season and now here in the postseason.
If you haven't already done so, we want to invite you to check out the Everyday or All Access Club.
Tons of bonus content from the show not only right now but coming up in the off season as well, hopefully after a Super Bowl win for the Denver Broncos.
But we'll have a ton of stuff there for you.
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check out the link in the show notes for that.
Cody, let's talk about our players to watch.
I mean, we've gone through 17 regular season games, players to watch,
keys to victory.
You know, it's been a fun ride this season.
I think a lot of times as we go through this,
you want to pick the names that aren't necessarily the low-hanging fruit,
but in the post-season, that's kind of the opportunity to go after the guys that are
the low-hanging fruit.
Like, I've got my eyes on a couple of guys, but I want to start with you.
Which players are you first and foremost, hey, these guys, like I'm, I'm, you know, I've got my binoculars.
I'm Sean Payton or Bill Belichick at the combine, right?
I've got my binoculars and I've got my eyes on these guys in the divisional round.
Yeah, let's start off on the offensive side of the ball for me.
I've got my eyes on both running backs.
I've got it on Jalil, McLaughlin and RJ Harvey Harvey.
I think the Broncos run game has to be such an important element for them this week,
specifically against Buffalo.
I mean, all signs point to Ed Oliver being able to play, but he's probably going to be
on a pitch count, but he's obviously a big anchor for their run.
They have good linebackers that obviously can plug downhill.
They're athletic.
And they got defensive backs that can come up and tackle.
So for me, it's, hey, this isn't the number one run defense that you face.
So you're you faced that in Jacksonville already.
And you had some moments where you pop some big runs here.
But running the football here for Denver in this game is going to allow the Buffalo
bills to not dictate what Denver does, right?
And so much of what we've seen this year from a coverage standpoint is how the secondary
plays the offense certainly dictates me what they decide to do in the run game.
Now, if they're trying to take away everything vertical, which a lot of the time,
this Buffalo Bills team, they play a lot of zone.
They also play man from time to time, but primarily their zone, they're funneling everything
inside.
And the best way to kind of open things up and give your wide receivers a chance that
maybe a couple of shot plays, well, guess what, run the football.
You have the ability to run the football with ease, and now all of a sudden they're playing
on their heels a little bit.
Jalil McLaughlin, you and I have talked about since really week 18.
teams. This guy needs a little bit more in terms of touches. This guy obviously is the most productive
back right now in terms of just the north-south effect averaging almost, what, five yards per carry
right now, find a way to feed that a little bit more. And then there's RJ Harvey and Sarah,
I think this is the perfect week for Denver to really say, you know what, we need to just focus on
these two guys. I know we've been pounding this drum for a long time here, but this is the week
and it should be where it's just RJ and Jal. One series, RJ, one series Jal. And then I'd say
bring an Adam Prentice for the past pro situations.
But aside from that, you can't get a guy going if he doesn't have rhythm.
All right.
If he has two or three straight carries where he's bursting off six or seven yards,
keep riding the hot hand here.
This is what you're going to have to do here in the playoffs.
And I'm sure Sean understands that,
but there's also a method to the rotation in terms of how Denver used their
personnel.
But in my opinion, these guys are going to be so important.
They are.
I mean, you said it perfectly there.
I mean, you need your running game to be effective,
especially in a game where you're going up against a quarterback that,
I mean, shoot, he can hit from any point of the field, right?
He can score from any point of the field.
He can throw it deep.
He can run the ball.
He can do whatever it takes.
He can score quickly.
He can orchestrate a long drive.
So you want to make sure that you are running the ball effectively so that you know at any given
point in the game, hey, we're going to take away your momentum just by giving the ball to
our running backs for a little bit here and letting them go to work and letting our running game
just sort of bleed out of this clock and get you.
antsy over there on the sideline and hopefully you start to press like there's so much of a
dominole effect to running the ball well i'm also interested to cody on offense i've got bow nicks
and the playmakers as my players to watch offensively in this game the bills we know they're
going to be missing some key elements of their secondary jordan poyer the safety the rookie
maxwell harston a very talented ball hawk there at the cornerback position those two guys are
really big losses for them and even if it was expected or not
it really, when you put inexperience on the back end,
how much did that hurt the Denver Broncos last year in the playoff matchup
between these two teams to have inexperience in the defensive backfield
and at linebacker as well.
So with the bills being banged up,
we're seeing the benefits of the Broncos being able to just watch everybody else
beat each other up.
And I think that puts the pressure on Bo Nicks and the playmakers to rewrite the narrative.
Once again, I will bring up that our word that I've been saying,
redemption all throughout the course of the week.
Bo Nix and the wide receivers have to redeem themselves after a brutal game against Buffalo in last year's playoffs.
There's just no question about it.
So I think that aspect of this game is going to be critical.
And we also mentioned the newcomers for this team, Cody.
Telanoa Hufanga and Dre Greenlaw, you and I have talked about it this week.
Those two guys were signed in order to get the Broncos past this point in the playoffs.
They were signed to bring championship experience.
They were signed to defeat a player like Josh Allen, quite frankly, with their physicality, with their ability to impact the game defensively.
Those are my defensive players to watch.
I'm interested in know your perspective on that as well as the guys that you've got your eyes on.
Yeah, no, I think that's fantastic, especially considering what we talked about early on in the week about that experience factor is that, you know, Denver, they were looking to upgrade the middle of the field, right?
Well, they got those two upgrades in Dre and Huff.
And those guys, they bring the juice, Dre Greenlaw, full go in the final practice of the week, is ready to.
to rock and roll here against the Buffalo Bills.
We're going to keep our eyes on him, obviously, and Huff.
I think those guys can be difference makers in this year's game.
And I think that they were on the roster last year,
they would have been tremendous difference makers, maybe in that game.
So I'm with you.
I'm going to go with Passertan and Riley Moss here.
Bronco's secondary.
Look, Kalil Shakur is obviously their best wide receiver at this point.
You have to factor in Brandon Cook's in his speed.
You got Keon Coleman and his up and down nature that we've seen so far this season.
But for me, it's just you want to see your second.
he got there and make plays, right? If Josh Allen isn't going to try to test Pat Sertan,
he's going to try to throw to Riley Moss. This is the perfect opportunity for what we say
that Riley Moss picks six in the playoffs is going to hit something fierce. May this be the
week that the Broncos do that, right? Because you look at the bills, Josh Allen may have
some turnovers from here and there, but man, they do a really good job sometimes at overcoming
when they turn the football over. The hardest way to make that the reality for them,
pick off a pass, return it for six. Then that really puts the pressure on them a little
bit. It changes the dynamics. So I want to see how these guys do against a banged up wide receiver
core. Whereas, you know, I think Pastor Tan on his podcast recently said it best, you know,
when he had Champ Bailey on it. One thing there, Champ brought up to him was, hey, it's,
you know, we all know like the big name guys in the NFL, right, that you're going up against
on a week-to-week basis hit. But there are a lot of guys you're going to match up with over the
course of the season that aren't necessarily highly scouted on the scouting before, not their best
receiver. And Pastor Tan said, absolutely said, that happened to me with the coach.
with Donnie Mitchell when he was over there.
He said, and this guy's something fierce.
Now, obviously, he's not indie anymore.
But I think you cannot overlook the bill's wide receiver room just because they are
banged up.
They have some capable guys and they're going to rely on obviously their tight ends to
alleviate some of that pressure.
But so much of the secondary and Pat Sertan and Riley Moss's production is going to be
so big for Denver here this week here.
And with that said, Broncos country, we're going to jump into our keys to victory.
Our bold predictions for the game.
So make sure you keep yours on deck as we break down.
where the Broncos might run their way to the AFC championship here
it's Saturday's game here on today's episode of the show.
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The playoffs are almost here, folks. And you know what? If the Denver Broncos are going to win at home against the Buffalo bills,
what we believe is to be one of the most dangerous teams right now in the NFL playoff race, they're going to have to do a hand.
handful of things. We'll get into the keys to victory. We'll share our bold predictions for the
division around and we want you to share yours with us as we go along this journey here
on today's episode. I want to say thanks to everyone in Broncos country real quick. Thanks for
making us your first listen. Thanks for tuning in and making us a part of your day. It means the
world to Sarah and I as we get ready to hopefully go and cover an AFC championship game next week.
But in order to do that, the Broncos have to take care of business. Sarah, let's get into our keys to
victory, my friend. First off for you, what is your key here for Denver winning this?
game on Saturday against Josh Allen and company.
Well, Cody, I want to go off script for my first one here because I was just thinking of
it as we were talking in the previous segment about this narrative about the bills being so
much bigger than the Denver Broncos on their offensive line compared to Denver's
defensive line.
And I heard somebody say I won't call out who it was, but I heard somebody say that Denver's
defensive front is much more about finesse than they are about size and power.
And I thought that that was a really interesting comment to make because they're lighter than the Buffalo offensive line.
So I want to see the Denver Broncos defensive front come out in this game and absolutely pop somebody, not literally in the mouth, because you would get flagged for that.
And we don't need to give the bills any free first downs.
But, you know, in a manner of speaking, I want to see this Denver Broncos defensive line come out and absolutely pop these guys in the mouth.
I want to see them after last year's playoff game, especially where you were dominated in the.
trenches. Don't let that be the case in this game. Prove to the Buffalo
bills that you are not a finesse team. I'm really excited to
hear your take on this because this is the first time that I've heard that. And I hope
that it makes the rounds into the Broncos locker room that, oh, well, the
bills are so much bigger than you guys on the offensive line. Therefore, the
Denver defensive front, because they're lighter, they're more of a finesse unit.
I don't know what your thoughts are on that, Cody, but I think the
Broncos winning the battle in the trenches regardless is going to be a huge key to victory.
It is.
And look, they said the same exact thing when Denver took on the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Eagles offensive line is bigger than the Denver Broncos.
They're going to dominate the trenches.
This and that certainly was not the case there.
Obviously, in week five here, and the Broncos can't make that beat the case here in the playoffs.
And look, it's almost kind of like that David versus Goliath mentality.
I look at the Buffalo Bill's offensive line.
They got some really good players.
But at the end of the day, Denver's got some.
really elite level players on the defensive line at the second level, at the third level right
there. It's not about who's bigger. It's about just who makes the most plays. Who's smarter?
Who takes the best angles in this game here? And we've seen Devere go up against some big
offensive lines. And I like what they've been able to do, even though, hey, someone may be
bigger, but guess what? They might not be as fast. They might not be as strong, even if they're big
to be able to handle a bull rush there from John Franklin Myers or the finesse and the strength
combined of guys like Zach Allen.
This is what is exciting to me.
It's just another element that people are overlooking here for Denver.
And you think guys like Jonah Ellis, who remember last year,
he tried to come down the line of scrimmage and then obviously he had a pulling tackle
and it hurt his shoulder.
Jonah's got a chip on his shoulder, literally and figuratively in this situation.
So I think that Denver is going to rise up to the occasion.
I like that, Sarah.
I agree to set the tone.
And maybe that starts with Dre Greenland.
Maybe that starts with Taleno Oahu Fonga.
Maybe there's an outside toss play to James Cook.
And all of a sudden, you see.
see Talanoa who Fonga screaming downhill and he just blast cook for a three or four yard loss.
That right there would set the tone here for the Broncos.
I like that key to victory.
Set the tone there physically there.
For me, I think a lot of it, I'm going to go to the offensive side and I'm going to talk
about Denver's offense dominating the time of possession, Sarah, right?
Because we have seen at times this season, Denver has had in the last handful of weeks.
What is it?
Four different games where they've had, I think, four plus 10 plus play drives, so to speak.
took maybe eight to 10 minutes off of the play clock there.
And some of those drives have resulted in touchdowns.
Some of those drives have resulted in field goals.
But I think that this is the week where if you get those drives, Sarah, over half of them have
to be touchdowns.
And you can't just settle for field goals all game against the Buffalo Bills.
You need to find a way to put up points.
I know it's cliche when you say it, but people don't realize how hard that task really is.
And that also goes into improving the red zone, which Sean Payton desperately wants.
So for me, dominate the TOP and find a way to get touchdowns rather than field goals.
For me, that is going to be the key to victory here for Denver offensively.
We talked about it on our squad show earlier in the week,
but I think a bold prediction from me for this game is that the Broncos bat a thousand in the red zone for this game.
I think that that's going to be a key to victory.
And I think that we've seen this team get a lot of red zone attempts.
That's why it's so staggering that they aren't as efficient as we want them to be, right?
because they do get into the red zone pretty frequently.
I think that's one of the biggest disconnects out there about the Broncos'
offensive efficiency or, you know,
are they actually a good offense or not?
A lot of the drives that they have get to the other side of the 50 or into the red zone,
and they just don't always capitalize on that.
So that's my bold prediction for the game,
is that they bat a thousand in the red zone,
and I'm going to say they get at least five attempts,
four or five attempts.
And I know that's a lot of scoring,
but they do get there a lot.
I mean, that's just facts.
So they get there a lot.
And the reason why they don't necessarily score 40 points a game is because they're not always turning those red zone trips into touchdowns.
They score on the majority of them because they don't really turn the ball over.
Onix doesn't take a ton of sacks.
So they're not necessarily getting pushed out of field goal range all that often.
So they're scoring on most of these drives, but they're not punching it in.
And this is the game to punch it in.
So that's obviously a key in this game.
But also, Cody, just dominate in the same ways that you've,
dominated all year long, situationally, pass rush, third down defense, red zone defense.
If you can do the things that have become your identity this season, at least in the good ways,
I think you're going to be able to host the AFC championship game.
That's the hope.
That's the hope.
And look, this is a Buffalo Bill's team that we know, Sarah.
They can score.
They can put up points, you know, at ease sometimes, no matter how good your defense is.
And that's why I think the offense has to be able to score a little bit more in this game.
I'm with you here.
My bold prediction is a little bit different, though, Sarah.
I'm going to predict that the Broncos collectively as an offense run for over 100 yards in this game.
And hopefully we're talking about over 100 yards and multiple rushing touchdowns.
Maybe RJ Harvey getting involved breaks off a couple of big runs.
This could be the week that that certainly happens and unlocks another layer here to the offense.
For me, that is going to be my bold prediction here.
And obviously, I think for Broncos country, whatever bold predictions you have,
make sure you share them with us here as you would get ready for Saturday's playoff game at Empowerfield.
a mile high.
It is going to be a 2.30 p.m. mountain time kickoff and it is going to be electrifying here.
And you know what, too?
Sarah and I, we're going to have you cover.
Not only are you going to get a postgame show, you're going to get a squad show as well.
And hopefully we're all sitting here on Saturday celebrating a potential trip now to the
AFC championship game.
It's going to be a tough one.
It's going to require the Broncos best effort.
Sarah, any final thoughts here, my friend.
I'm excited.
I mean, to circle it all back to the beginning of the show, Cody, when we talk about
Sean Payton being introspect.
I'm excited to watch this game with my family, with my kids.
Like I, my parents are coming.
It's my dad's birthday weekend on the 18th.
And, you know, I'm going to get to watch this game with, with my loved ones.
And this is what it's all about, right?
Creating those memories of why you were a fan in the first place, right?
Yeah, the Broncos may keep us up at night.
They may give us a bit of nerves when it comes to, oh, my gosh, you know, the fear of failing in the playoffs is, I get it.
I mean, we've been there.
I sat through and played Flappy Bird through 43 to 8 against the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl, right?
I mean, I've been through the 2005 AFC championship game against Pittsburgh where shoot it.
It felt like the Broncos were getting gifted a trip to the Super Bowl that year and have the rug ripped out from underneath your feet.
We've been through so much as a fan base.
And I get it.
Like, you want to win so bad.
We all hate losing, I think more than we love winning or at least I would say that's true for me.
but to get to embrace the moment with the people that you love and watch the game and just enjoy the moment.
That's what it's all about because like Sean Payton said, eventually, you know,
you don't necessarily have to get off the track as a fan, but eventually this two shall pass, right?
And so you've got to enjoy these moments when you got them.
Yeah, three games remaining.
Only one is guaranteed.
And that is Saturday's matchup here against the Buffalo Bills.
Broncos country.
We'll have you covered.
Stay tuned, locked on Broncos every single day for more.
