Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - LOCK IN: Denver Broncos Can CLINCH AFC West and Top Seed on Sunday

Starting point is 00:00:00 In week 16, the Denver Broncos can not only clinch the AFC West, but they have a chance to clinch the number one seed and have home-filled advantage. We'll break it all down here on today's episode of the show. You are Locked-on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. What's up, Broncos country? Welcome into another episode, Lockdown Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the Lockedon Podcast Network,

Starting point is 00:00:31 the number one sports podcast network in the country. Shout out to all the every dayers out there. Thanks for tuning in, making us your first listen, however you choose to do. So we appreciate you so much as the Deborah Broncos are riding the high of being 12 and 2. This is the place to be. I'm Cody Rourke. Credential Broncos reporter from Ohio Sports. Join, as always by Sarah Bedinger, site expert of their predominantly orange.com.

Starting point is 00:00:53 And the Broncos on Sunday when they take on the Jacksonville Jaguars, Week 16 has some important stakes at hand here as the Broncos can not only clinch the AFC West, but they can clinch the number one seat. We'll tell you how they can do that. Plus, could Evan Ingram be in line for a revenge game against his former team? How my Sean Payton plan to deploy his Joker this week? And Denver's defense is facing a red hot Jacksonville Jaguars offense. We take a look at some of the early storylines ahead of this matchup.

Starting point is 00:01:19 On today's episode of the show brought to you by our friends over there at Fandu. If you want to be right in the middle of the action this season, visit Fanduil.com and place your NFL live bets all season long. Sir, you know what? It's nice to be in a situation here for the Denver. Broncos as they prepare for the playoffs. They've already clinched the playoffs by. Now the Broncos don't have to sit here and clench trying to get one like they did last year.

Starting point is 00:01:43 Denver's in a good position. But man, Sunday's game has big stakes here when they take on the Jacksonville Jaggars because they have a chance to not only lock up the AFC West, but they also have a chance to clinch the number one seed this week, depending on how the dominoes fall. The quicker you clinch, the less you clench, Cody. I think you just might have figured something out there. quicker you clinch, the less you clench late in the season. Broncos country is obviously excited to have clinched a playoff berth,

Starting point is 00:02:10 but look, we don't want to be clenching at the end of the season, right? You want to be locking up that AFC West title as quickly as possible. You want to be locking up that number one seat, if at all possible. It's going to be a bit of a race to the finish because the AFC, while it has been slightly disappointing in a number of different ways this year, it's been pretty good otherwise.

Starting point is 00:02:32 A lot of teams that kind of, Maybe worse to first situations, maybe some situations where there's unexpected division races heating up here late in the season. Obviously, the Broncos have the Jaguars coming to town who could end up being one of the top four seeds overall in the AFC. But in order to get that number one seed this weekend, which is possible, the Broncos not only have to beat the Jaguars, but they need the Chargers, the Patriots, and the bills all to lose at the same time. So that's a maybe a far-fetched scenario, Cody, but I think the AFC West, title is well within reach because the Broncos can get that if they win and the Chargers lose. I mean, that's not overly far-fetched. We just got to put on our Dallas Cowboys hats for a couple of hours on Sunday and hope that the Cowboys can come through against

Starting point is 00:03:18 the Chargers and then the Broncos take care of business as they have been all year long. Yeah. And look, obviously, the Chargers is going to have to travel on the road here to take on the Cowboys. And I think in the next couple of weeks, I think it stacks out favorably here for Denver when you talk about the road and the gotlet, I think the Chargers have to face. Once again, as I mentioned, on the road this week at Dallas, home next week against Houston,

Starting point is 00:03:40 who has right now probably the best defense in the league. Denver's just got to take care of business, right? They win on Sunday against the Jaguars, which isn't going to be an easy task. This is going to be a very good matchup, very good Jaguars team coming to town. You combine that with hoping that Dallas wins. Guess what?

Starting point is 00:03:55 Denver is AFC West champions for the first time since 2015. And it's nice to see that it would be like similar face because before Patrick Holmes and the dynasty that was the chiefs kind of came to the forefront, it was the Peyton Manning Broncos led dynasty in terms of dominating the AFC West. Now it's nice to see maybe the Broncos will get that back here once again. But let's go into obviously the number one seat. We talked about the division, how Denver can clinch that. Denver can clinch obviously the AFC West and the number one seed if Denver wins, the Chargers lose, the Patriots lose as you. mentioned and the Buffalo Bills lose or tie here. We know who the Broncos play. We know who the chargers play. And now you have a couple of tough matchups here. Josh Allen and the Buffalo

Starting point is 00:04:39 bills are going to be traveling to Cleveland. Now, I think we say tough because of the Miles Garrett led defense, Miles Garrett closing in on history, potentially being able to be the NFL's leading sack artist. Josh Allen playing at a very high level right now and trying to get the Buffalo bills into conversation for the one seat, which they still are at this point in time. And then you have the New England Patriots taken on the Baltimore Ravens on the road. And once again, we don't know what Baltimore Ravens team is going to show up in that situation. So I think this is one of the situations where you and I and Broncos country, we're sitting here looking at like, all right, this needs to happen, this needs to happen. Whereas for the team, it's simpler. The Broncos focus is,

Starting point is 00:05:18 hey, we need to go beat the Jacksonville Jaguars. We don't care what anyone else is doing. We're going to go out there and beat the Jags. But man, how crazy would it be, Sarah? And I'm curious, let Broncos countries chime in on this as well. How awesome would it be? be with three weeks left in the season, well, after this week, essentially, with two weeks left, if they already had the division and the number one seed locked up. That would be monumental for a team that a lot of people were counting out this year. It absolutely would be. And regardless of what does happen against Jacksonville, the Broncos will have a chance to kind of get that ship corrected either way against Kansas City just a few days later, right? Because obviously they play

Starting point is 00:05:54 against Jacksonville on Sunday. And then you have a four-day turnaround where you go and play against the Patrick Mahomes list Kansas City Chiefs now on Christmas night. And that is going to provide this Broncos team with an opportunity to, I know that there's, we've talked about whether or not you want to have a buy. We've talked about week 18 potentially being a Jarrett Stidham game. Regardless, the Broncos are going to have a little mini buy after Christmas Day, right? So that is kind of nice for this team to have in their back pocket at this point in the season, no matter what does happen with the number one seed.

Starting point is 00:06:27 So of course you want the number one seed. But how crazy would it be, Cody? As we're, obviously, us as folks who cover the team, we analyze the team, fans of the team, we're all thinking about, okay, not only what happens at the Broncos win, but what else can happen here in the things that can transpire afterwards. So here's what can happen. The Broncos can, after that Raiders game earlier this season, they got a mini biweek. They had their regular buy week.

Starting point is 00:06:52 They could get another mini biweek here coming up. And then they could potentially have a actual buy week. week in the playoffs, not to mention, you might just throw your starters out there for a couple of series like a preseason game in week 18, depending on how quickly you can wrap things up. So it's that clinch versus clench situation that the Broncos are in right now, and at least for the fan base and for those of us covering the team. But that to me is kind of fascinating for a team that has already got a good track record of keeping guys healthy, look, I mean, having that extra time all throughout the course of a

Starting point is 00:07:26 season. That's a huge advantage, I think. Yeah, it is, especially considering, you know, the Broncos getting a little banged up right now. We know Brandon Jones on IR. We don't know if it's going to be season ending or if he could have a chance to return to the players. That timeline hasn't necessarily been specified at this point here. It'd be nice to get guys back. I'm always anxious, Sarah, though. I would say, I remember 2012. The Broncos had a first round by. They come, they play at home in front of, you know, against the Baltimore reasons. Then the Joe Flacco, Mile High Miracle, Jacoby Jones, things happened. And in my head, I'm thinking to myself, like, you know, I don't like first round buys because sometimes you come out flat.

Starting point is 00:07:59 Whereas, like, I think a team that's playing in the wild card round the week before, and they go on to advance, they've been playing. They're in a rhythm. And also, I'm an Oregon Ducks fan. Oregon had a first round buy and they got mollywop by Ohio State coming out of the buy week. So, buy weeks, I don't know how I feel about them, but I think it is important to get at that time. It's about being able to maybe reset your focus there and focus on what's ahead. You get an extra chance to scout maybe who you're going to play.

Starting point is 00:08:23 So it is exciting from that standpoint here. But a lot of good scenarios and opportunities for the Broncos here in week 16, the number one thing that they must do. They must take care of business and beat a red hot Jacksonville Jaguars team. Part of the way that they could do that, John Payton could unleash Evan Ingram for the ultimate revenge game. We'll break that down to more here on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. Today's show is brought to you by our friends over there at Rocket Money.

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Starting point is 00:09:40 subscriptions with RocketMoney. Go to RocketMoney.com slash Locked On today. That's rocketmoney.com slash locked on. RocketMoney.com slash locked on. Today's show is also brought to you by friends over there at Doer. And folks, it is the holiday season. season here. And I know what I'm going to be wearing at every special event. I'm going to wear my pair of Dewar jeans plus their comfortable fabric button down long sleeve shirt. That is my go to whether I'm going to a Broncos game to cover it or whether I'm going to a family dinner, especially around the holiday season. Doers denim and lifestyle apparel, it's engineered for movement and versatility. You can take it with you on the go or whether you're just trying to launch.

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Starting point is 00:10:53 percent off that shopdoor.com slash locked on Denver. Over the past two games, Denver Broncos tight end, Evan Ingram has only had three catches, but it's time for a revenge game against his former team. The team that cut him in the 2025 offseason Broncos country, we're going to tell you why Evan Ingram is going to be key for the Broncos beating the Jaguars. And we'll talk a little bit later about the Broncos defense going up against one of the hotter offenses in the NFL. But quickly want to say thank you to all of you everyday listeners of the show.

Starting point is 00:11:22 Cody and I appreciate you. so much for making us your first listen of the day every single day. And if you haven't done so already, we want to invite you once again to join the Everyday or All Access Club. There's some great clip breakdowns in there right now. The all 22 of Bo Nix's four touchdown passes against the Green Bay Packers. Obviously, some of his best throws of the year. You want to hear what Cody has to say about those throws in particular, as well as a number of other plays going forward that are going to get broken down. It's a ton of other benefits for joining the Every Day or All Access Club. I want to invite you to do that. The link will be in the show notes for you to do so.

Starting point is 00:11:57 Cody, let's talk about Evan Ingram in this potential revenge game here. Obviously, I would say in terms of the hype of finally getting a Joker in the Sean Payton offense, the luster has worn off quite a bit, right? We've seen Evan make a big impact at times this season, specifically against the commanders, had a big game. He's made some big catches in games like against Philadelphia. But as far as being like this every down, down easy E, the offense is easy button. We haven't seen that. And I don't think it's any part of Evan's fault whatsoever.

Starting point is 00:12:31 I think it's just the way that he's been deployed out there. So how, I guess maybe is the bigger question. Like we want to see the angle of the revenge game. But how is this going to happen? Like are the Broncos going to abandon the jumbo sets? Are they going to put him out as a slot, like a big slot at times? How would you see this unfolding if this is going to be a revenge game for Evan Ingram? Yeah, I think it's very clear what Sean Payton has kind of indicated how the Broncos approach their personnel groupings.

Starting point is 00:12:59 And it is very much matchup contingent. The past two weeks, the Broncos have faced an elite level pass rusher and Max Crosby. And then one week later, they face Micah Parsons. They face an aggressive front. The Jaguars defense has some really good players. But I wouldn't say they have a pass rusher to the extent that they had against Parsons and Crosby there with all due respect to the Jaguars. I will say like in those situations, the Broncos. chose to go with heavier personnel groupings so that they can put extra bodies to those sides,

Starting point is 00:13:28 knowing that, hey, there's going to be times when we really want to have time on a dropback for Bo Nix that we just need as much extra protection to take away that threat of a guy winning and destroying a one-on-one. Because against those types of pass rushers, you know, it doesn't matter how good Garrett Bulls is, Mike McGlinchy. Like, that is an elite-level battle between those guys. And sometimes the defensive guy might get the advantage. So it's like, hey, we don't want this guy to wreck our game plan.

Starting point is 00:13:51 So that's why they brought extra tight. They brought Adam Troutman. They brought Nate Adkins. They brought Frank Crumb over to help neutralize these guys a little bit and to help out. Now, in my opinion, Sarah, I think this is a week where it's like, all right, we know that the Jaguars have athletic, rangy coverage linebackers. This is the perfect opportunity to try to get Evan a little bit more involved because of the fact that, hey, it's going to be best on best here.

Starting point is 00:14:15 You know, you're going to get matched up if you're Evan Ingraham at times against a linebacker. Can you win that advantage? I think the chip that Evan has on his shoulder. And to your point about the production of the luster, that hasn't been Evan's fault. It's just really been the utilization and the mixed and constant change of personnel groupings that we've seen from Sean Payton. He had a catch, a crazy catch last week against the Packers and fought for extra yards.

Starting point is 00:14:36 And I think it was fourth and short. And then, if I'm not mistaken, I think Denver went forward and got it on the next play there. But Evan almost kind of made like this one-handed grab, caroubled it, and then fought for extra yards on a longfield situation on third down. I think that Evan is far too valuable, Sarah, to this offense to not be a factor this week, right? You mentioned the commander's game, what we saw from him in overtime. That's the formula. It's like, all right, how can we get him more involved in ways like this?

Starting point is 00:15:03 This is the week that the Broncos can try to do that because they are going to have a tough test against some of these linebackers that the Jaguar certainly do present here defensively. Yeah, Devin Lloyd has five interceptions this year, Cody. And I can't remember exactly what game it was. I remember watching him get a pick six. Was that the Chiefs game? I can't remember what it was. But the dude, he's been playing really good football this season.

Starting point is 00:15:24 And they do have that one pass rusher off the edge. I'm not saying they can't get to the quarterback in other ways. But Josh Heinz Allen, obviously, is their best guy, 23 quarterback hits this season. And so, yeah, there's, I don't think the Broncos necessarily, we're not talking about like the Max Crosby or Micah Parsons level, but I think just right below that, you know, in terms of Josh Heinz Allen, he's, he deserves to. ton of respect for how he can get to the quarterback as well. But you're right. I think this game presents an opportunity for you to maybe utilize Evan a bit more, take away those jumbo sets a

Starting point is 00:15:56 little bit more. Of course, you do want to run the ball. Of course, an offense that's as explosive as the Jaguars as we're going to talk about, you want to keep them off the field. So, of course, you want to run the ball. And we get that. But Evan Ingram with, like I said, three catches in the last two games, he can affect the game. We'll move the goalpost as much as we need to here. He can affect the game without getting the ball. He can affect the game just by being out there on the field yada yada, et cetera, et cetera. I really want to see a high volume of targets going his way, Cody. I really do. And that's not to say, hey, force feed Evan Ingram at the expense of efficient offense. But I think that this is a game where you really do want him to to play into that storyline a little bit. Hey, this guy, James Gladstone, looks like he does lunch pail to work every single day.

Starting point is 00:16:46 he's uh you know he cut you in the offseason he disrespected you they didn't feel like they needed you they didn't want you anymore they cut you and they decided that you weren't going to be part of what they were building going forward go show them what they're missing i think that's the angle that evan has to take going into this game and that's why sean peyton and i think sean peyton likes that stuff too doesn't he cody yes he does i mean sean's the type of guy that pays attention to how many catches a guy needs to get an incentive bonus for the year or how many rushing yards he'll do whatever he can to get those guys paid. When it comes to like angles like this, it's also something that he loves to pay attention to. So I'm very curious to see what Sean Payton has in his deck of

Starting point is 00:17:25 cards. We'll see if he finally deploys the Joker here this week against the Jacksonville Jaguars. But one of the more interesting dynamics I think we got to talk about here is the Broncos defense. Look, they buckle down greatly in the second half against the Green Bay Packers this week. They're facing another red hot offense with Trevor Lawrence and an offense that's putting up 25 plus per points like it's nothing. How can the Broncos prepare for the Jaguars? We'll look at some of the bigger storylines here on today's episode of the show. Broncos country.

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Starting point is 00:18:19 with every drive, every momentum swing, and every highlight moment. Live betting is best when the game starts to shift. Whether a receiver gets hot, a defense tightens up or the momentum flips after a turnover. We've seen the Broncos capitalize on that. So Fandul, they let you jump into the moment with live spreads and money lines that adjust instantly. So if you want to be right in the middle of the action this season, visit Fandual.com and place your NFL live bets all season long over there at Fandul. They moves fast, and so can you. When it comes to the Devere Broncos defense, they've been tested over the course of the last handful of weeks coming out of the by week, and now injuries have impacted the safety position.

Starting point is 00:18:55 It's coming at an interesting time because now they're facing another red-hot offense for the second consecutive week in a row when Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars coming to town. Thanks, once again, all the everydayers out there for tuning in, making us your first listen. We appreciate you so much, Sarah. Look, I would say, like there have been moments this season, I think, early on, where Watching the Jaguars, you're like, man, they're just so up and down. I mean, there were conversations early on in the season on Twitter from folks saying, yeah, Trevor Lawrence, I don't think he's it for the Jaguars.

Starting point is 00:19:24 All of a sudden, they've suddenly just flipped a switch and they've become, I think, one of the more underrated, dangerous teams right now in the NFL. Who cares about what division they play in? They got two really good teams inside that division. They had three before Daniel Jones obviously got injured. The Colts were obviously a very dangerous team. That was a division that made me flip the perspective. of what people had on them.

Starting point is 00:19:45 But the Jacksonville Jaguars, they are red hot, Sarah. And for the Denver defense, it's going to be a tough test because this is a high-scoring offense that they're facing this week. Absolutely. I mean, I think that what they did against the Jets this past week, you can't discredit it because obviously the Jets are an NFL team and they've got people that are playing for jobs, playing for future contracts, et cetera, et cetera. However, I don't think that's necessarily the measuring stick that everybody's going to

Starting point is 00:20:12 want to use. Obviously, you took care of business against the Jets. Great job, but you've done a great job against other teams, right? They played well against the Colts, 36 points. They played well earlier this season against the LA Chargers. Thank you very much, Jacksonville Jaguars. They beat him 35 to 6. So they've played good against good teams as well as bad teams, although early in the season, like you talked about, being up and down, that was the up and down nature of it, right? They lost against teams like Seattle, against Los Angeles, against Houston. They weren't able to close against those better teams. But then they, you know, they beat the Raiders in overtime.

Starting point is 00:20:47 They beat the Chargers. They beat the Arizona Cardinals in overtime. It's one of those things that's like, it's funny because just a couple of blowout wins against bad teams by the Jaguars is what's kind of separating the perception of that team versus the perception of a team like the Denver Broncos. I don't want to necessarily turn this into a, hey, you know, respect needs to be given to the Broncos.

Starting point is 00:21:08 Respect, you know, we don't get enough respect. We don't get no respect. I'm not trying to turn it into that kind of conversation, but a blowout win against the Jets has everybody being like, ooh, look, Jaguars, shiny. And the Broncos, they're winning close games against, you know, a lot of good teams as well. And it just doesn't carry the same sort of oomph that people are apparently looking for,

Starting point is 00:21:29 which it is frustrating, Cody, because, I mean, yeah, I know the Broncos played a tight game in London against the Jets and it doesn't look great on their overall resume by comparison. Week to week, baby. Week to week. That's the NFL. And so to me, the Jaguars are another team that, yeah, they're hot right now, beat some pretty bad teams along the way.

Starting point is 00:21:49 But that's okay. They're going to get up for this game against Denver and come to the Mile High City, hoping to be a team that can finally upset the Broncos, which nobody's been able to do in the last 12 games in Denver. One of the hope is that the Broncos defense can go back to being that killer mentality unit that we saw, I think, in the second half against the Packers, and obviously through the first 11 weeks of the season, initially here. But here's what's impressive about the Jaguars, right? They suffered a blowout loss

Starting point is 00:22:15 against the Los Angeles. I think what, Matthew Stafford, like everything, get four or five passing touch on? It was one of those things there. But after that loss, they've only lost one game. They've won one, two, three, four, five, six straight games, six of their last seven games. And in their last seven games, even including the loss that they've had, they've scored 25 plus points or more. More recently, as you mentioned, the blowout against the Jets, 48 points put up on them. And they got contributions from everybody. Travis, ETN is balling. And you know, certainly they're going to try to get him involved in the passing game against Denver's linebackers. We know that Denver's depth at the safety position is being tested.

Starting point is 00:22:50 But here's where I look at everything with this offense in Jacksonville, and maybe how it stacks up against the defense. I think that this is now, after they traded for Jacoby Myers, this is a very good wide receiver room that Trevor Lawrence has to throw to you. Let's go through it. Brian Thomas Jr., who's an absolute stud. Jacoby Myers, who has a given at times in the past, has given the Broncos some problems. They got Parker Washington, but more importantly, they got two other guys as well. They're contributing, including a former familiar face here in Tim Patrick,

Starting point is 00:23:20 who is playing really well. I'm so happy for Tim to see him succeed with the Detroit Lions when he obviously got released by the Broncos. Now he's in Jacksonville. He's cooking. He's contributing. He's making big time plays. And then they also have Diami Brown,

Starting point is 00:23:34 who's obviously got a little bit of a speed dynamic. This is a very versatile wide receiver room. And now with Brandon Jones being out, at least for the remainder of the regular season, PJ Lock's going to have to step in there. The communication has to be better because what we have seen from the Broncos in the secondary, particularly at linebacker and maybe even the safety position, there have been too many big plays in that area of the field.

Starting point is 00:23:56 So that's what the Jaguars, I imagine, are going to try to come out this week and try to test. And that's why your pressure has to be so good, right? Right away, the Broncos pressure package has to be great. And obviously they were great in the second half. against the Green Bay Packers. It felt like they finally gained that edge against Jordan Love that they desperately needed early in the game.

Starting point is 00:24:16 So this is a game where you need that pressure package to be on point right away. And you can't let Travis E.TN kick your butt because Cody, as much as I've watched the Jaguars this year, I feel like Travis ETN, who was the subject of so many offseason trade rumors, some even like people saying maybe he gets cut by this new regime. I mean, they cut Evan Ingram. They cut and traded a number of other guys. There was a lot of rumors about Travis E.TN.

Starting point is 00:24:43 The dude is playing the best that we've seen since he was at Clemson. And that's over the course of the season. Trevor Lawrence, he may be getting hot right now, but Travis ETN's been playing great all year for this team. He's got over 1,200 yards from scrimmage, 12 total touchdowns. So, you know, that's the guy that you have to key in on. That's why Dre Greenlaw's health matters so much right now. That's why you're front on defense, getting to the QB right away

Starting point is 00:25:09 and making sure that those early downs that you're forcing negative plays in the running game. It's so critical. That's the matchup right there that I'm looking at if I'm the Broncos. I'm saying, hey, just like we don't want Josh Jacobs to beat us, which, hey, maybe you learn from that experience. You can't let Travis E.T.N. eat every single time he gets the ball when they come to the Mile High City this weekend. Yeah, and I'm very curious to see how Vance Joseph this week deploys the balance of being aggressive

Starting point is 00:25:35 versus, hey, like, there's going to be times we need to drop back into zone. I just look at ETIN is this all around versatile guy that can just break it open at any moment, get to the outside edge at any moment. This is going to be a tough test for Denver. But I think it's going to be one that they're going to be ready for. And I think some people when they hear us say, oh, it's going to be a tough test. They're like, oh, why are you trying to diminish the Broncos? We're not diminishing the Broncos any way, shape, or form.

Starting point is 00:25:57 They're like, well, how many times can they face a big test? Folks, it's the NFL. Every week is a test. There's big games, big opponents. And the Broncos are at a stretch right now, Sarah. I wouldn't say it's their toughest stretch. They've already conquered that. But this is a meaningful stretch here.

Starting point is 00:26:12 And with how the Jaguars certainly are playing and the momentum that they have, the Broncos have to figure out a way to kind of put that fire out a little bit. I like how Denver matches up against them. I'm certain that we're going to see PS2 probably line up on Brian Thomas for a few times. But I think in key passing situations, I think we're going to see PS2 against Tim Patrick. And I think we're going to see everybody else try to mix and match there. Denver's going to have to figure out how to stop Jacoby Myers a little bit, though. So this is just where they have all the options.

Starting point is 00:26:38 You know, in the run game, the passing game. Denver's got to get after Trevor Lawrence, but also Trevor's the type of guy, too. You can't get too far up field because he can tuck it and run underneath. He's very versatile in that sense. So I think that this on paper is an exciting matchup. I think it's going to be once again, two of the best teams right now in the AFC, battling one another. The Broncos have the top spot.

Starting point is 00:26:59 They're trying to clinch the AFC West. They're trying to clinch the number one seed. Hey, this is essentially the team that if possibly you might end up. up playing in the playoffs. So this, in my opinion, sir, this is a playoff game here for the Debra Broncos. It absolutely is. And they brought in reinforcements, didn't they, Cody? They brought in a fellow Cody, Cody Schrader, the former Missouri running back, former D2 running back, get a little intel. He spent four months with the Jags this year.

Starting point is 00:27:23 They also played against the Liam Cohen offense early last season when they went to Tampa Bay. And we remember how well the Broncos played against that Tampa Bay offense. I know it was early last season. I know it's different personnel, things like that. I know that coaches add wrinkles every single year, but that was Liam Cohen's, you know, offense last season. And that was what he did with Tampa Bay last year is why he got hired by Jacksonville

Starting point is 00:27:45 this year. So the Broncos do have some experience going up against him. They, they know some of that personnel there in Jacksonville, obviously. It'll be fun to see how these two teams face off against each other. Once again, it feels like,

Starting point is 00:27:57 like that Packers game, right? It's not, this one, it's way more consequential in terms of it's an AFC versus AFC. But at the same, same time, it feels like both of these teams realize, hey, we're playing for bigger things right now, and that's going to add to that intensity. It's not a divisional matchup. It's not a rivalry game, but it's two teams that realize there's a lot at stake. And I think that's going to add so much to

Starting point is 00:28:19 the overall just behind this game. We're excited for it. I know you are as well. Broncos country. We appreciate it so much for rocking with us. Thanks for making us your first list. And real quick, make sure if you haven't done so already, check out the everyday club. There's the member option or there's the all access version. The all access version gives you exclusive insight, all 22 film breakdowns, a new series that Sarah and I are doing called Coffee Talk, where we talk about PR and the media world. We talk about our careers coming up.

Starting point is 00:28:45 We talk about things that are laid back in a different format than you get here from the free show. Plus, every week you get exclusive content behind the scenes, interviews inside the locker room and more so check out the all access planets in the show notes below or lockdownbroncos.com. We'll see you tomorrow. Sarah sits down with my man, Tony Wiggins, of Locked-on Jaguars to preview Sunday's big-time AFC showdown and crossover Thursday.

Starting point is 00:29:07 You get that on tomorrow's episode of the show.

Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - LOCK IN: Denver Broncos Can CLINCH AFC West and Top Seed on Sunday

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