Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - RIVALRY: Denver Broncos Can't OVERLOOK Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday Night Football

Episode Date: November 6, 2025

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Denver Broncos, Las Vegas Raiders, a rivalry as old as time. And it all comes to a head on Thursday night football. We'll break it all down here on today's crossover episode. You are locked on NFL crossover. Part of the Locked on podcast network. Your team every day. Everybody loves Thursday night. Football is the Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders face off on a short week

in an AFC West divisional matchup. I'm Cody Rourke, host of Lockdown, Broncos. Broncos joined alongside by your boy Q. He's our boy Q2. Locked on Raiders to preview Thursday night football. We'll go through why it's a short week for both teams, some of the biggest storylines post-N-Feld trade deadline where the Broncos are at, not looking too far ahead to Kansas City next week.

Plus, we'll go through key matchups in this game. And how are the Broncos trying to prepare for the Raiders and Brock Bowers without Patrick Sertan the second? Then we'll go through the keys to victory for both sides. If the Raiders are going to win, what do they need to do if the Broncos are going to win? what do they need to do? You get all that here on today's crossover Thursday. Brought to you by friends over there at Price Picks.

Download the Price Picks app today. News Code Locked on NFL to get $50 in lineups if you play your first $5 on up. Thanks to all the everydayers out there. Thanks for making us your first listen. However, you choose to do so. Q, great to see you, my man. I always love being able to do these crossover shows. We get a chance to chop it up here as both of our teams are going to face off here on Thursday night football.

Let's get into the biggest story here. What is the biggest story? for your Las Vegas Raiders coming into this AFC West matchup in primetime action on Thursday night. Well, it's always great to be a part or part of the show with you and talk a little Raiders and Broncos. But man, it's been a wild, you know, short week for the Raiders. I mean, they have this tough loss at home against the Jacksonville Jaguars. And boom, all of a sudden they turn around. They trade Jacoby Myers to those Jacksonville Jaguars.

And oh, by the way, they're still preparing for a game coming up on Thursday. So, I mean, the NFL doesn't slow down. And when you're playing on a Thursday night, it comes even quicker. And so that's what the Raiders challenge is, is how do they, you know, move on from one of their better wide receivers and Jacoby Myers and who's going to step up and really fill that void. So that's really the storyline that I'm looking at, right? Can they put that loss to the Jaguars behind them quickly because they have to? And then all of a sudden have some other guys step up into that role. So I'm looking at a guy like second round pick, Jack Bess, right out of TCU.

What is he going to do? This is a guy that's got seven catches on the season, his rookie year. Dante Thornton, Jr. out of Tennessee. He's only got five catches, his rookie. year and was a healthy scratch on on Sunday against Jacksonville. So are one of these guys going to step up? Are they going to fill that void? Or is it going to be all the Brock Bowers show, maybe Michael Mayer and Trey Tucker?

You know, how does Chip Kelly, how do the Raiders really compensate for a very good set of hands of Jacobi Myers, a really good route runner, a guy that just seems to find a way to get open and make himself available? How do they make up for his loss? To me, that's going to be the biggest storyline for this team going into this short week, this game on Thursday. Well, and that's what I was going to ask you about, too, because I've been following the conversation this week, especially after they traded away Jacobi Myers.

But you guys just recently brought in Tyler Lockett, as we know, Pete Carroll loves Tyler Lockett. I saw some conversation that, okay, what does that mean for Jack Bash out of TCU in terms of his snap counts? And I think he didn't play any offensive snaps essentially against the Jaguars? Yeah, no offensive snaps against Jacksonville and Dante Thornton Jr. was a healthy scratch. So what do you think that'll be this week? Do you think it'll be more Tyler Lockett? I mean, obviously, I know Trey Tucker is their speed guy. He's very fast.

I know he was the, you know, from following your show in the offseason, I know he was the guy at training camp making the big plays downfield. And then, of course, there is the boogey man of that offense, which we all know is Brock Bowers, who what a welcome addition back for him watching this past week over 12 catches, three tutties. How do you think the Raiders come into this week trying to game plan against this ultra-aggressive Broncos defense? Yeah, I think it's going to be more.

than, or it needs to be more than the Brock Bowers show, because I know the Denver Broncos have that really good defense, and I know they're going to key in on him knowing that, hey, that's Gino Smith's guy, right? And even in plays that happened against Jacksonville, I saw times where Gino was just looking at Brock only. And there was other guys that were open on the route, but he saw 89. And that's not a bad place to go. That's not a bad place to get comfortable. But these defensive players and defensive coordinators get paid too. And they're going to lock in on that and say, hey, just jump 89, right? Just make sure that you're right there, get ready to jump. jump that route because Gino's going to go to him.

So that's why I'm saying a guy like Jack Besh and Dante Thornton Jr., they're going to have to step up now. I mean, it's one thing to be a rookie and have a learning curve. Learning curve's gone when you trade your veteran wide receiver as far as I'm concerned. Now your learning curve is done. Now the team is looking at you saying, okay, rook, it's time to step up. So now everyone's going to have to do a little bit more heavy lifting. Gino's going to have to get selective as well.

He can't just lock in on one guy. And unfortunately, well, that's what he was on Sunday. And again, it was great to see Brock Bowers out there. as you mentioned, 12 catches, had three touchdowns on the day. But man, you've got to be able to spread the ball around. You've got to be able to get other guys involved or else it's going to go the other way. Especially with the Denver Bronco team that creates a lot of turnovers, that's the rest of beaver disaster for Thursday night.

Yeah, and I'll tell you what the biggest storyline here is for the Broncos this week. We all know, no Pat Sertan in this game. This is going to be the first time. We'll highlight a little bit later. This is the first time that they played, you know, when Brock Bowers have been on the field where PS2 is not going to be out there. PS2's done a really great job in neutralizing that threat in previous. matchups. So that'll be something we look for to maybe seeing how it goes this week.

I think the biggest story here is can the Broncos offense finally piece together a game where it's not just fourth quarter heroics and that they can play effective football in the first quarter, second quarter and the third quarter. They have yet to play a complete game so far, Q. And the crazy thing about it is they're on a six-game winning streak. First day puts them at seven games one in a row, which is crazy here. We know that this Broncos team here, at least in Denver, they're talented, but they're not playing their best football yet, can be a scary thing here, is that they can find a way to do that. What is the story here with this Raiders defense this week and maybe how they might try

to play Bo Nix and this Broncos offense? It's been kind of so up and down so far this season. Yeah, I mean, it all starts up front. I mean, Patrick Graham's defense is all based off of getting pressure on the quarterback with the front four, not having the blitz. And unfortunately, for the Raiders, they haven't got home enough, right? Only having 16 sacks on the season. They do have pressures.

Obviously, Max Crosby is Max Crosby. But, Cody, it's been the same song and dance for the Raiders for a long time in their defense. who is the true Robin to Max Crosby's Batman? They still have not identified one. They've been trying to do it for years, going back to Chandler Jones, Malcolm Coons, obviously he's been there. Tyree Wilson was drafted to be that guy. There's been guys that have been brought in.

They obviously brought Christian Wilkins in to be a force from the interior, and that didn't work out. He only played five games. They still don't have that true Robin. And so it's all on Mac Crosby, and that's just realistically, that's not going to get it done. So this team has not been able to really maximize, I think, their ability defensively,

the cover three that they're running, the soft zone that they're running, it seems like there's a lot of holes in that zone where wide receivers could just sit down and make themselves available for the quarterback. So ultimately, this game is going to come down to, you know, the Raiders defense line has got to have to get pressure on bow necks. They're going to have to frustrate him, rattle him a little bit, and he's tough to rattle. And not to mention he can run, as you know.

So they're going to also have to kind of cage him in as opposed to just pinning their ears back and trying to get after him. They're not going to be able to, you know, lose Cotain. If they lose Ketain, they're going to lose him, and they're going to most likely lose the game. One of the bigger strengths of the Broncos offense this season has really been their run game. They're one of the top five units right now in terms of rushing yards per game. Last week, the Raiders and defense is coming off a performance where they led Jacksonville go for over a buck 50 on the ground. What is the story here with this Raiders run, D?

Is it more so that? Because they even saw something as well as Devin White, you know, we know who he can be. He's also one of the top leaders and mistackled so far this season. And what is the story here with this Raiders run D? Yeah, they tackled terribly against Jacksonville. I mean, let's just call it, call it what it is. They did not tackle well at all. And honestly, going into that game, I knew Jacksonville's going to want to run the ball

because they hadn't ran the ball very well, the first of the two games before that one. And they did, right? Over 40 times they ran the rock. And like you say, went over a buck 50. And that's the strength of the Raiders defense has been so far as really slowing down the run and stopping the run. So to me, that's a huge red flag. Wait a minute. Hold on.

That's one of your strengths. and you just got gashed like that. So the linebackers, Landon Roberts, Devin White, Jamal Adams, right? These guys,

they're better at getting downhill and trying to stop the run, right? Jamal Adams loves to play around the line of scrimmage and even try to get after the quarterback. But when that all of a sudden gets compromised, you're in trouble.

So the Raiders got to get back to the drawing board and figure out how to stop the run first and foremost, because if not, then the Broncos are going to have an opportunity to run all day long on them. And that's, that's going to be a problem.

I don't know how they can, how they can really play a good sound quality defensive game if they can't stop the run because then all of a sudden is pick your poison. So that's that's the first thing that they're going to have to be able to do to stop the run with Denver. I'll say watching the film, they definitely missed Trouvon Mowrig. That's a guy I feel like would have been so great to have on this defense for them this season, especially in the outside.

I know Sean Payton last year when talking about facing the Raiders, they mentioned Trevon specifically. Now, obviously, he's not on the Raiders anymore there. We'll see where things are at here. This is going to be an interesting match. Thursday night games are always weird because you don't really have a chance to install a full-on game plan and get practice reps at full speed. It's walkthroughs for everybody, essentially.

And that means we'll see an interesting game potentially here on Thursday night football. But the matchups that we'll dive into could define this outcome. The Broncos are going to try to figure out how to stop the Raiders and Brock Bowers without Patrick Sertan, but also how can the Broncos take advantage? How can the Raiders take advantage? We'll go through key matchups that will define Thursday night's game here on today's episode of our crossover Thursday, They locked on Broncos, locked on Raiders. Today's crossover Thursday is brought to you by our friends over there at Mizzen and Maine.

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that we have our eyes on. We want to say thank you so much to all the every there is out there. Thanks for making us your first listen, however you choose to do. So don't forget the subscriber, follow wherever you get podcast. Q. Let's dive into key match. to watch. From the Las Vegas Raiders perspective, which matchup are you eyeing specifically here for Thursday night football in such a short week where you don't really get to install a full-on game plan?

We talk to players in the locker room this week and they say it's really about just going back to fundamentals because you don't get those full speed practice reps as you're just trying to get your body right for Thursday night. From the Raiders perspective, which matchup has your eye? Well, I'll tell you, man, it's funny you mentioned fundamentals because for me, the matchups are going to be about fundamentals. And I think it's the defensive line, right? I think it's the defensive line, right? against that front four. How can they be aggressive? How can they slow down Denver? You know, can they, I don't want to say have their way with the offensive line. I don't think they're going to have the way with anyone's offensive line. But can they be productive against the Broncos offensive line and can

they slow down the run? If they can slow down the run, then it's going to start to play into the factor what they want to do, which is pin their ears back and try to rattle Bo Nix. But if they can't stop the run, then there's no reason for Bo Nix to drop back 25, 30 times, right? I can just continue to hand the ball off like you saw the Jacksonville Jaguars do and just run up and down the field. field against the Raiders. And so I really think it's going to be the matchup of the defensive line against that offensive line, you know, the battle of the trenches. We talk about it all the time.

But for this game, knowing that Sean Payton is going to want to run the ball. And obviously, there's some dudes there in Denver that can get it done. I mean, I'm watching some of the Broncos game a couple weeks ago. And I want to say, was it, R.J. Harvey that had a run about 30-some yards to the house where he didn't even get touched? Like, there was not a guy that touched him. I was like, wait, does somebody want to put a hand on them? You know what I mean?

It's like one of those where I know if Sean Payton could go ahead and hand the ball off and continue to do that. He'll do that. Obviously, Bo Nix has a strong arm, could throw the ball around the yard. But man, I mean, it makes life so much easier if your running game is going. So I think that the biggest challenge for the Raiders is going to be, you know, can that front four, can those linebackers come downhill, slow down the run, stop the run and make the Broncos one dimensional. So really that's the matchup that I'm looking for defensively for the Raiders to have a little bit success against the Broncos. Kew, I think this is going to be the most important matchup of the game. And I'm glad you

highlighted it because so much of the Broncos offensive line, they've been highly graded by a lot of different metrics, right? But the idea of what we see with this offense and Denver and their identity, I really think it is to run the football and everything else would open up for Bo Nix. There's been times this season where the Broncos simply haven't committed enough to the run. Now, even though they're a top five rushing offense right now in the NFL, that's great. Some of those numbers are skewed a little bit late there. There are times where the Broncos, you know, they'll get the run game going.

I think last week against the Houston Texans, as we know, that's a very good defense down there, that Domingo Ryan's has. J.K. Dobbins got on a little bit of a hot start. Three carries for 24 yards early on. And then the Broncos just went to this habit of throwing, I think, five or six straight times after that, and you have incompletions. It stops the clock.

And then all of a sudden you're plunting. The Broncos can't get into this formula against the Raiders on a short week. And I've always said it this way, even though that the Raiders are two and six, they're sitting in a position right now where if they can try to poke holes in other team seasons, they will find a way to do that. They'll try to find a way to capitalize on that. The run game is going to be key.

And I think from our perspective in Denver, the biggest frustration has been not consistently sticking with the run, even though the production has been there in terms of the Broncos rushing offense and the output per game this season, they don't stick with it when they should. And then it forces Bow Nicks to just go out there and throw, throw, throw, you have to have balance. And hopefully this is a game where the Broncos can do that. My matchup that I'm going to go to here, I think is going to be how the Broncos defense, which is one of the top units right now in the NFL, how do they prepare for Brock Bowers? As I mentioned earlier, and the two times that the Broncos have faced off against the Raiders, granted different quarterback, Gardner Minshau, I think, Aidan O'Connell in one game. Brock Bowers has been the guy that goes off against everybody, but he hasn't necessarily gone off exactly against the Broncos when Pat Sertan is covering him. But there is no Pat Sartan in this game.

It is Riley Moss. It is second year quarterback, Chris Abrams Drain, and a combination of Jaday Barron and the nickel corner, Jekwon Macmillan. I don't think we're going to see a game plan here where the Broncos have one guy follow Brock Bowers specifically. I just don't think that they can do that. I think that they're going to play their cornerbacks just based, you know, field boundary situationally. I don't see them matching up and saying, hey, if they're going to move Brock, we're going to follow. I think they like Riley Moss against Trey Tucker, speed versus speed there in that regard. I'm very curious to see how Denver comes out and tries to game plan for him.

Because look, we're talking so much also about Brock Bowers, but then there's Ashton Genty who, I think can be multifaceted, not only as a runner, he runs through contact with ease. He's a guy that can also impact you out of the backfield as well. I think that's where maybe Drake Greenlaw is going to come into the equation here for the Broncos defense. Yeah, I'm glad you brought up Ashton Gentie because it's funny when you're talking about the run game and the fact that the Broncos don't really commit and stick with the run game. I feel like that, you know, I feel like I'm saying the same thing that you say when it comes to the Raiders offense because look, Gentie will get like last week two carries to start the game for 17 yards

and then Chip Kelly decided to call three pass plays, and then they have to punt. You know what I mean? It's like, wait, hold on. You're having a success. Go ahead and rock with it. You know, let the guy that you drafted number six overall be that guy that you drafted number six overall, but they haven't truly committed to him as, you know, as the focal point of the offense.

And now they get Brock Bowers back, and that was great. I mean, he was out for three weeks, so you know what he brings to the table. But yeah, that matchup with, you know, whoever decides or however they decide that they're going to defend Brock Bowers, that's going to be huge. How is Ashton Genty going to play a role? role in this, right? I mean, he's a guy that can catch the ball out of the backfield as well. The Raiders don't really emphasize that too much. He did catch five passes last week. I think he's a 20 and five and five passes, the game. I think that's a good recipe for

Gentie moving forward. He only got 13 carries last week. So we'll see if they, you know, if they start to listen to me at some point. I know I'm the loud. I'm the loudest dude in the room. They've got to be able to hear me. I don't know if they listen to me. It's a different. You can hear me, but you might not listen to me. So I'd like to see them get. Ashton Gently more involved. I mean, there's a reason why you took him as high as you did because he's a big-time playmaker. So how could you make that chess match, right?

How can Chip Kelly use Ashtienti in his favor against his Broncos defense? Yeah, I think that's going to be interesting too. And I'm curious to see how maybe Chip Kelly tries to adjust against the Broncos pass rush. Right now, they lead the NFL by a wide margin in sacks, 40 sacks through nine games right now. They had 63 total last year through the entire 17 game stretch. They're averaging around four or five against. game at this point here. So my next

matchup that I got my eye on is obviously Jonathan Cooper, Nick Benito, against the outside offensive tackles here of the Las Vegas traders trying to get after Gino Smith. What has been the story from Gino from a pocket standpoint, from a pressure standpoint this season? How has he evolved around next? I know he's throwing a lot of

interceptions this season. Is that because of pressure primarily or is that just because he's staring guys down? Well, it's a combination of the two, right? He is definitely staring guys down, but he's been under pressure as well, right? I mean, so this is one of these games that this matchup that you're talking about, the Broncos defense getting out to the quarterback,

this concerns me a lot, right? I mean, the Broncos are having a historic season when it comes to the sacks that they're getting. And Gino's taking sacks, right? I mean, he's a guy that can run, but he doesn't really run very well. And he doesn't know how to slide. Like, he just looks like it hurts when he slides, right? He clearly is the guy that didn't play baseball back in the day, right?

He doesn't have that slide into second skill set. But it's just, man, he takes a lot of sacks in this Raiders offensive line is still a work in progress. With Colton Miller being out and he's on IR right now, Stone Forsythe is their left tackle. DJ Glaze is their right tackle. He's still trying to round into form. He's only a second year guy. J.P.J. is their best offense alignment right now. He's at the right guard spot and I think he does a lot better job, you know, blocking than he does pass blocking. So that's something to pay attention to. And then, you know, there's center, right? Is the guy in Jordan Meredith that's just learned how to play the center position. So, and then Dylan Parham at the left guard spot, but he's,

he's just kind of there. This is a working. progress, man. This could end up being, as I talked about the trenches earlier, this could end up being how the game is won or loss for either team. If the Raiders can find a way to protect Gino, they could be in a good position because he can't get the ball out and get it to the playmakers. But man, if they struggle to protect him, it's going to be a long day at the office. And so far, this offensive line has done a pretty rough job when it comes to blocking for Gino Smith. One thing the Broncos can't forget is last year when Gino Smith was a member of the Seattle Seahawks. He had a big time rushing touchdown against

him on a key third down situation. So have to account for him, have to account for the wheel route from the running back out of the backfield. We'll see if the Raiders try to take advantage of some of the earlier issues the Broncos had with stopping that play. And also maybe trying to avoid Gino turning back the hands of time with his legs in Thursday night's game here. But Broncos country, Raiders Nation coming up next year on crossover Thursday, Q and I, we're going to tell you what each of our teams respectively need to do in order to come out with a victory in prime time action. You'll get all that here on today's.

Crossover Thursday. Today is locked on Broncos crossover Thursday is brought to you by our friends over there at the Game Time app. The NFL season is back. And honestly, there is nothing better than being in the stadium surrounded by fans cheering on your team and Thursday night football. Broncos country, you can do that here inside the Mile High City with the Game Time app. But let's be honest, getting tickets can be a hassle sometimes between queues, login screens and prices jumping at checkout. It can be frustrating. But that's why I use Game Time. That's why you should use Game Time. It's the app that gives the advantage back to the fans. Game time is fast. They're easy and they're backed by the game time guarantee where you'll always get 100% authentic tickets delivered on time and at the best price.

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Don't forget to subscribe or follow wherever you get your podcast. So you stay up to date what's going on with your favorite teams every single day all year long. That's our promise to you. Q does a great job for Raiders Nation. If you're a Broncos country member, you obviously know you get that here, locked on Broncos as well. Q, let's dive into how these teams are going to win because I think really for the Broncos perspective this week, six game winning streak, a matchup looming next week with Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs.

Right now with Denver sitting at top of the division, the number one thing that they must avoid is overlooking this Raiders team, who I mentioned. earlier is in a perfect position to poke some holes. So if the Raiders are going to poke some holes in the Broncos season here on Thursday night football, what is it that they have to do to come out on top with a victory? Well, first, I'll start defensively. I think they're going to have to create a couple of turnovers. I really do.

And this is not something that's a calling card of the Raiders defense. It's not something that they just hang their hat on and they know that they're going to come up with some turnovers. But I do think that they need to steal a couple of possessions in this one. I really do. I mean, there's just, there's something about this Raiders offense. It's not clicking on all cylinders. So a couple short fields could help them put them in really good position to get into the end zone.

So somehow, some way they've got to create some turnovers. They're going to have to get some pressure on Bo Nix. Max Crosby is going to need to have a Max Crosby type day. And somebody is going to have to step up and help him out. And I don't know who that is because, look, we've been talking about someone stepping up for helping him out for a while. And it really hasn't come to fruition. I do like Jonah Laulu what he's been able to bring for the defensive tackle position. He's not in there all the time.

But, I mean, he's got four sacks on the season. Max has five. those are the two leading, you know, sack artists for the, for the silver and black. And it's wild to think how many sacks the Broncos have and the Raiders are struggling. Like I said, they only have like 16 on the season so far. So clearly not enough, but a couple turnovers are going to need to be had for the Raiders defensively to put their offense in a good position. And then, Cody, offensively, I think it's really simple. I think it's the Brock Bowers and Ashton Gentie show.

And I know that there's plenty of other guys to get the Rock to. Trey Tucker, we talked about him, Michael Mayer, another really good tied in. I'd like to see him get more involved. looking at the rookies, you know, Dante Thornton, Jack Bess, can they, you know, provide a little something, something, a little spark to the, the Raiders' offense, but it's got to go

through Brock Bowers and Aschen Genty, right? Chip Kelly's got to get creative. You can't just, you know, feed Brock every single play, every single pass play, feed it to them because the Broncos are smart. They're going to jump those routes. Going to take it the other way, but got to get creative how they use those guys, right? Passing game, run game, but they've got to be heavily involved.

I'd like to see Ashton Jentie get way more involved in. We saw them against the Jacksonville, Jaguars. And, you know, finally, you just got to protect Gino Smith. You don't protect Gino Smith. He's going to be on his back. He was the guy who was second last year in Seattle when he came to sacks right behind Caleb Williams. He got sacked 68 times.

The Gino got sack 50. Well, he's on pace to get sacked a ton of times more. So they've got to protect him as well. And that's not going to be a very easy task when you look at this Denver Broncos team. That's very opportunistic when it comes to get into the quarterback. So, I mean, it's, it sounds like a simple game plan. But really, it's sometimes you just got to keep a simple stupid, right? You got to use the kiss method and enroll.

with it and the Raiders haven't really done a very good job of doing that. So I think it's back to, you know, back to basics, back to fundamentals for this team if they're going to have a chance on Thursday against Denver. What about for you? I think that's the thing. Like you mentioned obviously trying to force takeaways here on this Broncos team. You know, Bo Nix has thrown a couple of interceptions the last couple of weeks where, you know, he floats a little high and inside against the Texans, you know, against the Cowboys.

He tries to do a no look pass and ends up getting picked. And Denver's defense starts off in rough field position. Boas kind of had these moments this year where he's kind of had a little bit of a slow start. So the one thing I think the Broncos offense has to avoid against the Raiders here on Thursday night is coming out there. You can't turn the football over early on. You have to protect it.

Obviously, I think you have to maximize every possession that you get. I like the idea of the kiss method, the keep it simple, stupid method. The offense for Denver would benefit from that at times because sometimes Sean Payton gets a little too fancy with some of his play calls. You get like the tricky endarounds, the motions. You know, you get like the crazy setup.

where you motion one guy fake the hand off to him. You fake the hand off to the running back. And then you roll out on a play action pass. I mean, some longer developing stuff. I don't think that's going to necessarily work consistently against the Raiders when you talk about that pass rush presence of Max Crosby, who in every game he's played against the Broncos, he's come away with the sack. And he's been a boogeyman here.

And so the Broncos have to avoid Max Crosby creating pressure. And then obviously, Bo Nix, trying to force the football into tight windows with pressure on him because you can't afford to turn the football over. In a game on Thursday night football, short week, you can't overlook anybody. I think that's going to be the biggest key. And to be able to take that pressure off of Bow to have to do all this, I think you just have to have complimentary football with the run game here. J.K. Dobbins, R.J. Harvey, these guys have showcased the ability to be effective.

J.K. is more of the effective ground guy. I think R.J. Harvey certainly can be. But R.J. has been a really big weapon here for the Broncos out of the backfield as a past catcher. Sean Payton has been looking for his Joker for quite some time. He's got that guy here in Harvey, who's obviously got a handful of receiving touchdowns, obviously brought them back last week, had one against the Houston Texans.

They love trying to isolate him in one-on-one matchups against linebackers because he just has the speed and the physicality to beat those guys in some of these situations here. I'll be curious to see how the Raiders defense plays Cortland Sutton because a large portion of this year, teams have been playing, press outside coverage with the corners and having a safety player.

over the top and inside. They're really trying to take away Cortland Sutton. And then it's really the focus on. Pat Bryant, Marvin Mims, Troy Franklin, can these guys go out there and make plays? Evan Ingram, Tied in. Hasn't had a lot of volume so far this season. If they can get him going, I think things open up well for them.

Defensively, I'm with you, Q. I think the Broncos have to find a way to get after Gino Smith, continue the trend of disrupting the passer. I mean, the Broncos pass rush is very unique because, Hugh, they're not necessarily sending a lot of crazy five-man rushes. they'll do it. Vance Joseph will send five, six, sometimes seven. He's diabolical sometimes the way that he does it. But primarily the Broncos have been getting home consistently with four players.

And that's obviously on your outside. You got Nick Benito, Jonathan Cooper. But then you got Zach Allen and you got John Franklin Myers. If one of those guys gets a double team, the other one gets a one-on-one, they're finding ways to win those matchups. The Broncos pass rush is very lethal. And that's going to be key this week, especially without having Pat Sertan. If you can try to get to Gino Smith quickly,

before he can get the ball to Brock Bowers and maybe Trey Tucker on a couple of downfield shots and these other guys in the short to intermediate, the Broncos will have a chance to win this game. And I think also complimentary football special teams, Denver Special Teams unit last week, Q, they played terribly in terms of their coverage. They're 31st right now in the NFL and kick return yards against right now.

They didn't have Marvin Mims last week. Michael Bandy, who filled in for him, had a muff punt that led the points here for the Houston Texans right before halftime. They got to play better on that side of the ball here. they have yet to play a full game of complimentary football. This could be the week where they get that, but they cannot overlook the Raiders.

This, in my opinion, could be a trap game here for the Broncos. Yeah, it's going to be interesting, man. It really will because, like, a lot of the things that you just said that the Broncos do really well, the Raiders don't do very well, right? So it could end up becoming one of those stand in the middle of the field and fights and, you know, whoever's got the best haymakers, whoever's got the one that can be the knockout blow is going to win this game. Look, it feels like the advantage.

and I know the advantage is definitely for Denver. Obviously, they're leading the AFC West for a reason. It's in Denver, so it's also going to play a factor in this game. And that pass rush, man, that pass rush really worries me. I think you're going to see a lot of, you know, six offensive linemen out there, have a, you know, offensive lineman report as a tight end. I think you're going to see some of that. They've been putting Alex Kappa out there.

They've got to do whatever they can to protect Gino Smith. Because, look, there's a one pass, two passes a game where Gino is Gino. You know what I mean? Like, you see this. that pass coming. You're like, oh, man. So he's got to avoid the G knows. And he had one of those last week to start the third quarter where he just threw the ball way too far across the field. And, you know, he was staring down Michael Mayer and he got picked. And so it's just, it's one of these, you know, situations after another after another. And that's the reason why, you know,

he's leading the league or tied with the most interceptions in the league right now. It's just, it's just not good. So he's going to have to protect the ball at all cost as well. Well, it all boils down to Thursday night football, prime time action in the mile high city between two teams with such a storied rivalry. Make sure you continue to check out Locked on Raiders if you're a member of Raiders Nation. Locked on Broncos, if you're a member of Broncos country as well have you covered. Obviously, with this preview, but post game coverage as well here on the Lockdown podcast network where you know it's your team every day. It's always great being able to sit down. We're going to be doing one of these here in a few weeks as well because I think the Broncos and the Raiders, I think you play Week 14 in Vegas.

So you're going to have a little bit of two shows here between us in the next handful of weeks here. But always love sitting down with your boy Q. He's our boy Q in the Broncos country. Always rocks with Q here. They appreciate the way he brings coverage to obviously the table here of the AFC West. And on top of that, we'll all see you for our post-game coverage here on the Locked-on Podcast Network.