Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - GET RIGHT: Denver Broncos DEFENSE Must DOMINATE Justin Herbert & Chargers’ Wounded Offense

Episode Date: October 7, 2026

The Denver Broncos must stop the Los Angeles Chargers from getting right in a desperate AFC West showdown. With Patrick Surtain II and Riley Moss potentially sidelined, Denver’s pass rush must suppo...rt the secondary while containing Justin Herbert, Omarion Hampton, and a Chargers rushing attack ranked ninth in the NFL.Cody Roark and Sayre Bedinger discuss Denver’s need to win first down, force turnovers, and exploit Los Angeles’ battered offensive line. Zach Allen’s interior pressure, Nik Bonitto’s matchup off the edge, and the coverage from Jahdae Barron and Kris Abrams-Draine could shape Denver's defensive success. On offense, can Bo Nix break out of his funk, push the ball downfield, and finally establish the run? J.K. Dobbins, Evan Engram, and Jaylen Waddle headline Denver’s potential offensive catalysts against a Chargers defense allowing 26.5 points per game.Cody Roark is a credentialed beat reporter for Mile High Sports and provides boots-on-the-ground coverage of the Broncos daily in person. Sayre Bedinger is one of Broncos Country's longest-tenured voices, writing for Predominantly Orange. Together, they bring Broncos Country the most in-depth and objective coverage of the Denver Broncos every single day, year round.📸 - Ron Chenoy — Imagn ImagesWANT MORE DAILY DENVER BRONCOS CONTENT?For all of the latest Denver Broncos news today --Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms🎧 https://lockedonpodcasts.com/podcasts/locked-on-broncos/Locked On NFL League-Wide: Every Team, Fantasy, Draft, & More🎧 https://lockedonpodcasts.com/leagues/nfl/📲 Cody Roark Twitter / (https://twitter.com/codyroarknfl)📲 Cody Roark Instagram / (https://instagram.com/codyroarknfl)📲  Sayre Bedinger Twitter / (https://twitter.com/sayrebedinger)Everydayer Club  If you never miss an episode, it’s time to make it official. Join the Locked On Everydayer Club and get access to ad-free audio version of Locked On Broncos,  All-22 Film Breakdown, and access to our members-only Discord, and more — all built for our most loyal fans. 📲 https://lockedonbroncos.supercast.com/📢 Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!TempoFor a limited time, Tempo is offering my listeners SIXTY PERCENT OFF your first box! Go to http://TempoMeals.com/LOCKEDON60.QuoTry QUO for free PLUS get 20% off your first 6 months when you go to http://Quo.com/LOCKEDONNFL.OdooGreat organizations win because operations matter. And that’s why you should get Odoo. Try for free today at https://Odoo.com/lockedon.Butcher BoxIf you're looking for an easier way to get great meals on the table, give ButcherBox a try. Go to https://ButcherBox.com/LOCKEDONNFL to get $20 off your first box, plus your choice of free ribeye, new york strip, or filet mignon in every box for a year — with free shipping always.AppleYou can earn up to 3% unlimited Daily Cash back on every purchase you make with Apple Card using Apple Pay. Apply in the Wallet app on your iPhone today. Subject to credit approval. Apple Card issued by Goldman Sachs Bank, USA. Salt Lake City Branch. Terms and more at apple-card-dot-com.https://learn.applecard.apple/unlimited-daily-cash?cid=apy-318-2000008800000-400000000000039&itscg=2030032&itsct=srvs-crd-P3004756-C3004897&mttnagencyid=c1a&mttnsiteid=133087&mttnpid=LockedOn%20%28Audio%29&mttnsubad=srvs-crd-P3004756-C3004897&mttnsubplmnt=&mttncc=USPrizePicksVisit https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONNFL and use code LOCKEDONNFL and get $150 if you win your first $5 lineup!KALSHIToday's episode is brought to you by Kalshi. For a limited time, Download Kalshi and use code Locked On to get $25 when you trade $25. Kalshi. Trade what’s next.GametimeToday's episode is brought to you by Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDON for $20 off your first purchase.FanDuelGet three hundred fifty dollars in Bonus Bets — GUARANTEED — when you bet five dollars every day for seven days. Join all the action at https://FANDUEL.COMFANDUEL 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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Starting point is 00:00:00 Sunday's theme in the AFC West is get right. Hopefully it's to Denver Broncos and out of Los Angeles Chargers. You are locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day. Happy Wednesday Broncos country. Cody Roach, Sarah Beninger here. And on today's episode of the show, we're going to tell you why the Broncos defense must keep Justin Herber and the Chargers offense miserable this upcoming weekend.
Starting point is 00:00:32 And on top of that, for Devers' offense, points are going to be a premium for them against the defense that is allowed 26 points per game. And then we'll tell you, and we'll wrap things up why Zach Allen is probably going to be the biggest X factor early on here this week. You'll get all out here on today's episode of the show. Brought to you of our friends over there at Fandu. Make this your most rewarding season ever with Fandu Rewards Club every week. Check the Fandu app to see what's waiting for you.
Starting point is 00:00:56 Sare, let's get into the tail of the tape, my friend. I think first off, when we talk about the Broncos defense this week, matching up against the Chargers offense. I think we've got to keep an eye. Two key injuries here for Devers defense, Riley Moss, Patrick Sertan the second, unlikely that PS2 plays, and Riley Moss reportedly turning towards not playing here this week as well.
Starting point is 00:01:17 That's a big blow. But when you look at the Chargers offense, they got injuries galore as well. Yeah, they absolutely do. Obviously, their offensive line has kind of been in shambles for the last couple of years, right? And that's been a huge issue for them.
Starting point is 00:01:30 And so kind of like we talked about on our squad show on Tuesday, day, Cody. I really feel like there's got to be a very clear and beneficial relationship this week between the Broncos pass rush and those corners because obviously you want those corners to be playing confident. You want them to be playing fast. You don't want them to have to be holding coverage for five, six seconds because Justin Herbert was able to get outside the pocket and, you know, start some scramble drills, right? So you want these guys to be able to play within the framework of the defense, go make plays, go play fast, go play free, go play aggressive. because I think that's what honestly,
Starting point is 00:02:05 Jaudei Barron and Chris Abrams drain are both best at. It's just, hey, go out there, less thinking, more doing. The way that they can do that is by the pass rush stepping up. And it all starts with the Broncos taking advantage of like you mentioned, those injuries that the chargers have up front. Well, and I would say too, I mean, if they're going to this game without, you know, their left guard, their left tackle, their right tackle, I mean, the Broncos pass rush has an opportunity to eat.
Starting point is 00:02:28 Obviously, Ladd McConkey's also dealing with an injury. He's obviously an X factor. for Justin Herbert and at Chargers offense. So we'll see where he's at throughout the week here. I was obviously both teams report to the practice field for the first time since Sunday's games respectively against NFC West opponents. Chargers dropping into the Seattle Seahawks, Broncos, dropping into the San Francisco 49ers.
Starting point is 00:02:49 But Denver's defense right now, Sarah, at least through the first four weeks, when you look at the statistical rankings, they're trying to climb themselves out a little bit of a hole that they got themselves in against the Rams and obviously against the Kansas City Chiefs. Right now they're the 28th ranked defense in terms of net yards per game, right? So you talk about bottom 10, well, they're four spots away from the last spot, allowing 375 yards per game. When you lose a guy like PS2 and Riley Moss potentially for this game,
Starting point is 00:03:16 you always wonder, you know, is that going to take a little bit of a hit? But realistically, the Broncos have been primarily getting hurt in the run game department. Now, they did a much better job this past week against San Francisco and Christian McCaffrey. But right now, the Broncos run defense, they're allowing 100 of 4,000. yards on the ground per game so far through four games. Whereas you look at the Chargers offense, it seems like the one thing that they're actually consistently doing well right now is running the football.
Starting point is 00:03:42 Right now, they have the ninth ranked rushing offense in the league, rushing for 121.5 yards per game right now with a Marion Hampton leading the way with 238 yards rushing. And you got Mitchell behind him at 124. And then Justin Herbert, we know his ability to use his legs. He's the third leading rusher with 88 rushing yards. He's got the ability to take. it to the outside and get free. They even like doing some QB design runs.
Starting point is 00:04:06 Stopping the run this week is going to be a very, very big part for what the Broncos want to do. But then it's like when you don't have PS2 and you don't have Riley Moss, well, then it's like, well, now this might be the game where Herbert and the Chargers try to come out and try to air it out, even if they've got injuries at wide receiver. Quentin Johnson has been struggling. He's been struggling with drops. We said it at the beginning of the show. Sunday's theme is Get Right. And this is the one game you don't want to let Quentin Johnson, Justin, Herbert and the Chargers offense, get right against Denver's defense. No, you've got to approach this game like the Chargers are four and oh right now, right?
Starting point is 00:04:40 I mean, obviously we talked about that as well. It's an O and 4 team. They're down bad. Like the Chargers are kind of backs against the wall, desperate. I mean, coming out of an O and 4 hole is historically not very likely to happen, Cody. I know that only one team in the history of the NFL, which was, I believe, the 1992 Chargers, if memory serves me correctly from my. research, they were the only team to get out of an O and four hole and make it to the playoffs.
Starting point is 00:05:07 And so it's really not even about that at this point. I mean, obviously, this Chargers team would love to be the second team to be able to do that. And it starts one game at a time, right? Getting out of an O and four hole starts getting to one and four. So the Broncos have to make sure that they don't let that happen. Even though the Broncos have struggled going to L.A. in recent years, which we used to joke about the fact that, hey, going to L.A. is kind of like a, you know, an additional home game for the Broncos because the fans travel there. The fans show up. There's always orange in the stands.
Starting point is 00:05:40 I think, and I'm not saying, hey, yeah, you want to go into this game with no Pat Sertan, no Riley Moss. That's not what I'm saying by any means. But if you can get the Chargers thinking, hey, we should come out throwing in this game, that plays to the Broncos strength. That plays into their favor. What have we seen the Broncos struggling with defensively? a little bit this year. It's teams busting off big enough chunks on first down to get into favorable second and third down situation where then they can exploit and say, hey, you might have Pat Sertan on your team.
Starting point is 00:06:11 You guys, it doesn't matter. Like you guys, we're going to, we're going to complete a pass for three yards on third and two or we're going to complete a pass for four yards on second and three, right? It doesn't necessarily work to your advantage if you have those guys to be in constantly short down and distance on third down. So the Broncos probably want the Chargers to think, hey, they want to come out throwing in this game. Well, we can take advantage of that a little bit.
Starting point is 00:06:36 Even if we're down a couple of corners, that means that we can let our pass rushers pin their ears back and we take advantage of the Chargers O' line. So I kind of think the smart move for the Chargers, even with the Broncos cornerback injuries, is to try to still run the ball and get into those down-and-distance situation. So it's going to be up to DJ Jones, Alex Singleton, a couple guys who have struggled a little bit more than we're used to seeing,
Starting point is 00:07:00 even in some instances where those guys have been, you know, specifically Singleton. He's kind of been getting scolded a lot by the fan base lately, Cody. They've got to step it up in this game and make sure they're on point with run defense. Yeah, and those early downs are so important. I think about what San Francisco did last week, you know, even if they got three yards, you know, and running on first down, I mean, they weren't afraid to go for it on fourth down either. And luckily Denver's defense last week held up on a couple of of key fourth down stops, you know, defensively.
Starting point is 00:07:28 You know, this is one of those things we're winning first down this week for Denver's defense against Herbert in this offense. It's going to be very important because this is a team in L.A. that is desperate right now. They're backed up into a corner. And I always believe when you have a team that's kind of got their backs against the wall a little bit, they become a little bit more dangerous because they become a little bit desperate.
Starting point is 00:07:47 They're going to do some things that maybe they wouldn't do in the grand scheme of, you know, a normal game plan. It reminds me a lot of when the Broncos, they were one in five in 2020. and Sean Payton's first year and they clawed their way back because they were desperate. And they did some things that were a little unorthodox along the way to get there. They changed a lot of stuff up and the Chargers is going to be looking to do the same exact thing. I think one thing to pay attention to here as well, right? You know, obviously right now the Chargers offense, they've had 10 giveaways, which is 31st right now in the NFL.
Starting point is 00:08:15 Herbert has been sacked 12 times. That's bottom 10 right now in the NFL. They've lost four fumbles. They've had six passes intercepted. The Broncos have to find a way here, Sarah, to ramp that pressure up to get takeaways. Like this is the perfect opportunity to get rolling again in the takeaway department because the Broncos defense didn't have any last week. There were a couple of moments where a ball was on the ground. Unfortunately, didn't bounce Denver's way. This is a week where you need the ball to
Starting point is 00:08:38 bounce your way here if you are Denver defensively. That is our first look at the tail of the tape here between Denver's defense and Justin Herbert and the Chargers offense. But coming up next, we'll take a look at why the Broncos offense desperately needs to get right and why points will be at a premium against a banged up Chargers defense. Today's episode of the show was brought to you by our friends over there at Price Picks football is finally back. And that means Sundays are about to get a whole lot more interesting. Every week brings on new matchups, breakout players, big performances, and plenty of storylines to follow. Price Picks is bringing out its best offer yet for kickoff.
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Starting point is 00:10:31 And that's true in sports, just like it is in business. And the Broncos are working toward the goal of their offense getting back on track this week against the Chargers. And great organizations win because operations matter. And that's why you should get O-D. O-D-O-D-Pathom to manage, grow, and scale your business. Try for free today at O-D-com.com slash locked on. That's O-D-O-O-O-com slash locked-on. Points have been difficult to come by for the Denver Broncos offense so far this season.
Starting point is 00:10:57 And they don't have a very easy task going up against the LA Chargers here in week five. Broncos country, how's this team going to write the ship here against a division rival? I feel like obviously, Cody, we've seen this offense. Really, that's been the topic of discussion since all the whole offseason, honestly, with Davis Webb taking over play calling, wondering what's Bo going to look like in year three, wondering if the running game is going to get fixed, wondering X, Y, and Z, Jalen Waddle being the biggest edition that this team made, really the only notable edition this team made.
Starting point is 00:11:30 So the offense has been in focus. They've got to get right at some point. I mean, and it's not going to get much easier, right? You're going against the Chargers defense that Broncos have really struggled with in recent years. And then you've got to go face Mike McDonald on a short week after that. So it's not getting any easier. But like you said, points would be out of premium in this game.
Starting point is 00:11:49 Obviously, the Chargers have given up some big scores this season, but I feel like that's a big result of them giving the ball away a lot this year. The defense just had to had to defend a lot more. Yeah, no, they have. And they've been on the field a lot. And certainly, while they have a lot of the same personnel as last year, really think the difference for them defensively in terms of just being able to get the most out of them comes from Jesse Minter, you know, obviously who's having a lot of success calling a defense, therefore the Baltimore Ravens.
Starting point is 00:12:16 But, you know, for me, I look at this game and you look at the numbers right now for, the Chargers defense. I mean, right now they're allowing, they're kind of middle of the pack, right, allowing 333 yards per game. They are bottom 10 right now. They're 24th in the NFL and points allowed and that's 26.5 and it goes back to what you said there. I mean, the offense for them is not simply playing complimentary football. There's been times where the Chargers defense, they've done some really good things. I mean, Sarah, right now you look at it, they've got four interceptions on the year, they're fourth in the NFL on that. They've, they've had three fumble recoveries, which is third in the NFL. They've had seven total take.
Starting point is 00:12:49 takeaways this season. They've also had 10 sacks this year, which is good for eighth in the NFL. They've done some really good things. And really right now off the edge, it's Khalil Mack, who right now if the Chargers continue to teeter, he's at the subject of some trade conversations because of where the Chargers are certainly at. Tully-Tui-Polotu, obviously has two sacks. They have five sacks between their two top edge rushers. And right now, they're also dealing with injuries on the defensive side of the ball. You look at Derwin James banged up a little bit right now, cornerback, Dante Jacks, I know it was coming off of a concussion last week,
Starting point is 00:13:22 and then Dalvin Thomas in a defensive lineman there. Aside from that, they have good personnel, Diane Henley at inside linebacker. This is still a very good defensive unit in terms of their personnel, and they have always played the Broncos well. I'm curious to see how the Broncos offense can get right because points could be at a premium here for Denver's offense if they can force more takeaways off of Justin Herbert,
Starting point is 00:13:43 and the offense can get more opportunities, but we need to see this offense be aggressive. We need to see Bowknicks pull the trigger this week. I'm curious to see what version of bow we get coming off of a game where he's being criticized for not taking chances and not taking risks. Where's the balance here? I think here specifically the Broncos have to also find a way, Sarah, to try to run the football right now because the charges,
Starting point is 00:14:05 they're allowing 121 yards on the ground this season so far. And Denver's seeing a lot of light boxes. Denver's going to have to just commit to it, right? We say it every week, but this is going to have to be a week on the road where you can't not have a run against this defense, against Tui Polo to Khalil Mack, Teart on the inside. Like those guys will do whatever they can to stuff the run with Diane Henley. And if Derwin James can play, you know he's going to come up and be a force in the run game.
Starting point is 00:14:30 Yeah, well, you said it. They have to commit to it, right? They have to commit to running the ball. And it has to be from the get-go because we talked about it. During the game, the broadcasters, Kevin Harlan, Trent Green, this past week. They said the Broncos said they want to run the ball in our production meetings. And here they are. It's 12 past plays compared to three running plays.
Starting point is 00:14:47 So the Broncos are getting called out in real time for, you know, saying they're about it and not being about it. And I think that's been the biggest issue is that they just don't feel like they can commit to it. For whatever reason, this is obviously a throwing team. And that that's the funny thing is there's there's this disconnect of like, well, does the, do they trust Bo Nix? Because he's throwing so many short passes and they're designing so many short passes. Well, they keep calling pass plays. So they don't, they either don't trust the run game or they don't trust Bo Nix. you tell me, I don't know what's the run game.
Starting point is 00:15:18 It's the run game, right? So I think that with Bo, yes, he has to be out there. We've seen him rocket fire these passes downfield before and do it accurately and get the ball to his playmakers. We need that in this game. We need that from him. We need Bo Nix. If the pressure is going to be on him to step up and, hey, go win your team a game. Hey, go get the, if the buck stops anywhere and the offense has to get right,
Starting point is 00:15:44 Bo Nix has to take that upon himself and say, look, the buck stops with me because I'm the one with the ball in my hands on every single play. So whether we're throwing it or whether we're running it, the buck stops with me and I have to make all the plays that they're asking of me to make. And that requires me to fire the ball downfield. So what we've seen the last two games, unfortunately is against the 49ers, a hesitant to throw the ball downfield against the Rams, throwing the ball into harms way, way too many times, right?
Starting point is 00:16:12 dropped interceptions left and right against the Los Angeles Rams. So Bo just has to be better, Cody. He's in a funk right now. I won't say he's got the yips or anything like that, but he definitely has, he definitely is in a funk. And that is kind of the, you know, as Bo goes, we go.
Starting point is 00:16:30 That's how the offense is and the running game, especially, because we know that the Broncos can run. If they establish that, hey, Bo's throwing the ball down field. We got to account for that. That gets a defense on its heels. you can run the ball after setting yourself up by throwing it well. So it's not impossible that the throwing could set up the running.
Starting point is 00:16:49 However, Bo's got to make the plays. So that's the pressure that he's under. And it's a bigger discussion of, man, well, Bo Nix, is he worth this amount of money at the end of the season or is he not? Those conversations can be tabled because right now we just need to see Go play a good game. Yeah, it doesn't matter. And that's the thing is there was all the contract.
Starting point is 00:17:09 It's like, stop worrying about the contract right now. folks that's that's not even like this year like they could pay him after the show right they could but that's not even like on the radar right now that's where i think the focus gets away but i did get a little bit of a glimpse there remember against the chargers a couple years ago it was shown on the broadcast camera there was something on sean patin's play call sheet i got early indications as well that for davis web it's very similar this week here in terms of what the broncos should do and that is running the football they've got to find a way to commit to it. I don't know if it's a, you know, it's a scheme thing. We're watching the film where the
Starting point is 00:17:45 Broncos offense, they're just not pushing anybody back, especially when they're trying to run the ball. They're getting pushback. They're allowing penetration. And then there are times where they do it well. And then the running backs aren't seeing the whole man. Something's got to give at this point. It's a pain point here for this offense, but you are right. Bow has to be 110% batter. And the Broncos need to find a way to get him comfortable and get him confident this week against a tough Los Angeles Chargers defense. That is much better than what their statistical categories and the rankings seemingly indicate right now.
Starting point is 00:18:17 Can't make mistakes against this team specifically on third down. Remember last year on the road in L.A., the theme was drops. The theme was bow overthrowing guys. That can't be the case here this week against L.A. here. And Broncos country coming up next. We're going to tell you why Zach Allen might be the biggest early on X factor in this game against the Los Angeles Chargers. You'll get that here on today's episode of the show.
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Starting point is 00:20:50 but the most important one is the current game in front of them. And that's Sunday's matchup against the Los Angeles Charter. I'll tell you why Zach Allen is probably the biggest X factor in this game specifically. But first I want to say thank you so much to all the every dayers out there in Broncos country. Thank you so much for making us your first listen here on the Lockdown podcast, network, your team every day. also the number one sports podcast network in the country. Sarah, Zach Allen, even though that the Bronco sack numbers have been down this season,
Starting point is 00:21:17 I'm watching past rush reps of Zach Allen against the 49ers. I'm watching him do the dirty work, which for some reason, he continues to be consistent and smooth as ever. And he's even, I mean, there's times where you're watching him, and it seems like he's banged up. He's hobbling a little bit. He's limping or he's sore. But he comes back in and you would almost never know.
Starting point is 00:21:35 Like there's not a drop off even if he is banged up. You would never tell that there's something outside of the fact that when he's walking off the field sometimes. He's got a little bit of a, you know, a limp to him from time to time. I don't know what it is about Zach, but I'm watching him against the 49ers. And I'm going back and I'm watching the Seahawks game where I'm seeing Justin Herbert get hit left and right, left and right, taking shots to the ribs, interior pressure. We talked about injuries on the offensive line to that Chargers team specifically. We know that Rashon Slater is not going to be playing in this game. Joe Alt is dealing with the neck injury.
Starting point is 00:22:08 And then they also have Penning, Trevor Penning on the inside dealing with an injury. This is an offensive line for L.A. That was decimated before this game. And now they look a little bit more decimated coming into it. I'm looking at a Seahawks defense that generated 10 quarterback hits last week on Justin Herbert. And I'm thinking to myself, and a lot of that came on the interior. This could be a massive week here for Zach Allen. Zach Allen could be the biggest difference maker early on right now coming into Sunday's game.
Starting point is 00:22:36 I think he is, Cody. I really do because we heard even Kyle Shanahan say it on the broadcast on Sunday. I mean, we got to deal with 99. He's absolutely crushing it out there right now. So we got to pay attention to him every single play. That is the case. I mean, he has become that type of disruptor. Brock Purdy hasn't been sacked all year. Still hasn't. But Zach Allen did have three quarterback hits against him. And he felt, he felt number 99 out there for sure. And then he blocks a field goal. He's just getting penetration every which way. So we need him to continue that streak going this week. He's been the most disruptive interior pass rusher in the NFL.
Starting point is 00:23:17 And I think that was Zach Allen. You have somebody that can wreck a game from the inside out. And that's what the Broncos desperately need. Because not only are the chargers down to their backup left guard, but Cody, remember of Beattish, their center was hurt before the season even started. So they're already down. They're starting center. It's tough right now.
Starting point is 00:23:35 And this has to be a matchup where that whole defensive front is licking their chops. So I'll say, hey, Zach Allen, X factor in this game, but also I'm going to say Nick Benito, X factor in this game because now you're talking about he's in a get right situation. If anybody is, we talk about the offense needing to get right. I'm not saying Nick Benito has been bad this year. He's been getting a lot of extra attention, but you know he wants those numbers. You know he wants to be out there making a difference in contributing to this team. So I feel like this is the perfect opportunity for him to take advantage of a situation where a team's going to be missing their starters at the tackle positions, potentially for sure at the left side.
Starting point is 00:24:15 And definitely thinking Nick Benito is like, all right, whether it's the backups or not, like I have to go out there and dominate this game. Well, last year as well on the road to L.A., he got to go up against Joe Walt. And he had that clean, just burst off the line of scrimmage where he sacked Justin Herbert quick. And Joe Alt couldn't do anything about it, right? Now, my question is, like, let's say Joe Walt plays in this game, does he slide from right tackle to left tackle in this game? Or does he stay at right tackle? Because if he stays at right, well, he's going to be going up against Jonah Ellis, which means Nick Benito will be on the other side. And he'll have an opportunity to go against whoever the heck steps in at left tackle with Rashaun Slater being out. I think that's definitely something to watch here this week. Zach's going to be important, right? I think it's what, 12 quarterback hits for him so far this season. 13 pressure so far. Like Zach is going to be big. But man, I also think it's going to be another big opportunity. for Malcolm Roach. I felt like Malcolm Roach might have played his best game on Sunday against San Francisco. I really liked what we saw from him, but you need those other guys to step up as well. This is going to be a full-fledged effort here against the charge because if they can't pressure Herbert and he has time,
Starting point is 00:25:19 even if they don't have Ladd McConkey. I mean, that's not even official yet. Like he's right now, I think questionable coming into this game as it stands on Wednesday. They still have guys that can hurt you in the receiving game. And without PS2, without Riley Moss, that's going to be very important to watch. and to monitor this week. And that pressure marrying up with the coverage on the back end, that's going to be so key here this week here for the Broncos. I'm very curious to see what Vance Joseph's defensive game plan certainly is going to be. Let's go to the offensive side here. Who do you think it could be an X factor for them in this game? Because we look at an offense
Starting point is 00:25:52 for Denver that's struggling. And I think one of the easiest ways to try to get yourself out of a funk is to make the easy things more accessible here, right? We've talked about quick hitters this week here in the buildup as to what could help the Broncos offense get going. Do you think we could see that here against this Chargers team? And who do you think stands to benefit the most? Yeah, I think we will see a lot of that. I do. And I think Jalen Waddle is the first guy that pops into my mind as somebody who benefits the most
Starting point is 00:26:18 from it is we know that this team, he's their big addition. He's the missing piece. He's, you know, Davis Webb made the comparison. Josh Allen going into year three, we traded for Stefan Diggs. Look at what that did for Josh Allen's career. The Broncos understand how important Jalen Wattle is, not just to this offense, but to making sure that we have a franchise QB of the future. Like, this is the guy that we feel it's going to be open all the time. This is the guy that we feel can create separation.
Starting point is 00:26:45 This is the guy that we feel can bring the explosiveness to the offense, whether it's a slant or whether he's running a deep route or whatever it may be, you believe that Jalen Waddle can be this guy. But I also think, too, if we dig a little bit deeper here, I want to point out Evan Ingram and J.K. Dobbins. Dobbins obviously a former Chargers player. He's going to want to, you know, that never goes away being let go by a team for these players. So what we saw from Drey Greenlaw last week, I know it's not as fresh for J.K. Dobbins, but I kind of hope we see maybe not so much jarring at the coach on the sideline or, you know, shoving players heads into the ground. But I hope we see that little extra fire from JK because just like as many people as we're talking about on
Starting point is 00:27:26 this show, he needs a get right game. And then Evan obviously spurned the Chargers and free agency, He visited their facility. Didn't see any trophies in the trophy case. So I decided to go to Denver where there's three big ones. And, you know, I think Evan obviously coming off of a little bit of a difficult performance, got open a few times, Bo missed him a couple of times, certainly didn't throw an accurate pass to him on a play, which Evan could have turned up field, got a big gain. Didn't throw another pass to him where he dumped it off to RJ Harvey with space in front.
Starting point is 00:27:57 So I think Evan is one of those guys that you're seeing when you watch the take. back, hey, he's getting open. Hey, he's able to make plays. We got to get him the ball and let him make those plays. So the chemistry between he and Bo, I think we see it get back on track against the chargers. Yeah, I like this. This could be a big Evan Ingram, big J.K. Dobbins game.
Starting point is 00:28:16 And all of a sudden, if those guys get going, right, and get that confidence, I don't think it's necessarily a confidence thing for Evan more so than I do think right now it's a confidence thing for JK just because we have not seen that same explosiveness. You know, people want to say, oh, you know, the Broncos, you know, they don't have run game. And they're saying they didn't have one last year. They had a run game with JK last year. Like, JK was the run game. J.K. and Bo Nix early on last season through the first, what, 10 weeks of the season. He was on track to go over 1,300 yards. That has not been here for Denver. Like, Denver doesn't have anyone that's even projected to do anything close to that right now based on
Starting point is 00:28:50 the early indication. So that's going to have to be something to pay attention to here in this game. Can JK have a big game against his former team, even if it's a couple of years removed from the fact that he was a Charger. He was the guy last year, Sarah Lose, coming out of halftime. Remember, Denver's offense didn't have much. He got them going a little bit with a couple of big runs, including a touchdown there. So, JK could have a confidence builder in him, which leads to a potential Thursday night
Starting point is 00:29:14 matchup as well. You want to get some guys hot going into this game. You want to come away with obviously a road win against the Chargers, but you want to have momentum going into Thursday night football against a tough Seattle Seahawks team. So a very crucial stretch here for the Denver Broncos as they get ready for an AFC West show down and hopefully can round out with a hot week ahead of them and get right against the Los Angeles Chargers. That to wrap up today's episode show, Broncos Country. We appreciate you so much for Rock with us, making us your first listen. If you're a brand new viewer listener and you
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