Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - SURGE: Denver Broncos DEFENSE Delivers In Fourth Quarter Comeback vs. Chargers

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Denver Broncos defense injected life into the team when they needed it most, and that led to a fourth quarter comeback. You are locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day. Happy Sunday Broncos country, Cody Roark, Sarah Beninger here as we go through and talk about why the Broncos defense and Sundays come back against the Charters injected life into the team, especially when it mattered most in the fourth quarter. Also, Bowenicks in the offense, they struggled to. all game, but they were able to close out relatively strong to end this game in an AFC West matchup. Then we're going to hand out our game balls as the Broncos improved to three and two

Starting point is 00:00:44 on the season. Still a lot of areas they can get better. We'll go throughout here on today's episode of the show brought to you by 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. Sarah, my goodness, man, this game had a little bit of it all right. The Chargers coming into it completely decimated by injuries and our thought process was, you know what? The Broncos defense should be able to a feast on Justin Herbert and the Chargers offense. They did, but they also had some moments where they gave up some big plays. And there was not a lot of complimentary football being played by Denver's offense in certain

Starting point is 00:01:17 moments of this game. But man, the final three drives, Denver's defense, they came up big and clutch like we're accustomed to seeing. Yeah. If you were looking for style points from a victory this week, Cody, obviously those are in short supply. However, if you were looking for the Broncos defense to come through, as they seemingly always do in the fourth quarter with big.

Starting point is 00:01:35 plays. They did exactly that in this game. And just like you said, they injected whatever the Broncos offense needed in terms of just a little sign of life here. They got the monitor going up and down again instead of flatlining because this this Broncos offense has struggled with the same things, I feel like for three years. And they've complimented from the defense. They've benefited from short fields. Bo Nicks said it after the game. I mean, they probably don't win this game without those short fields being given to them by the defense. So starter, or backups for the Chargers, practice squad guys or not. The Broncos had to grind out a win in this one.

Starting point is 00:02:11 So like I said, style points are in short supply. But certainly, like, you feel like this is just kind of who this team is. Like they seem to play down to their competition. They seem to find a way. They seem to be able to climb back in when their backs are against the wall. Like, yes, it is frustrating. And you and I will have a whole episode dedicated tomorrow to kind of breaking down. You know, we'll dissect some of the things that we can be critical of.

Starting point is 00:02:35 For the time being, you will take a three and two record at this point in the season. Broncos country, how many of us said at the beginning of the year when the schedules came out? Hey, three and three after those first six games would feel pretty good given the gauntlet that you're running. So even the fact the charges are dealing with injuries, Cody, I don't think you put an asterisk next to this win. You take the wins any way you can get them. Wise men once said it doesn't matter if you win by an inch or a mile winning's winning. It doesn't matter who it's against here. And man, it did feel like to like this game, I'll admit, like you never really.

Starting point is 00:03:05 see me out of anybody, right? I'd say in Broncos media on the beat. I'm probably very level-headed and objective. I was a little emotional tweeting during this game. Like, I was genuinely frustrated. I'm like, my goodness, like, what the heck is going on? And the offense was obviously a major source of that frustration here. But we talk about Denver's D really kind of bouncing back.

Starting point is 00:03:24 I mean, Sarah, this felt like it was going to get away from them. And then the chargers, they did what they did best. They chartered while the Broncos defense turned up their intensity here because Bo Nix had that fumble that was recovered. Chargers had a short field in on the very next play. O'Marion Hampton runs in for a 42-yard touchdown against this defense, right, which I felt like did a pretty good job for a large portion of the day. That was one of those drives and plays where it's like they just kind of let the floodgates open.

Starting point is 00:03:48 And all of a sudden, Denver's down 1710. But it was after that, like to it even compounded because Will Lutz then goes on and misses a field goal on the next drive for Denver's offense, which once again, as Sarah said, we will be critical tomorrow. We're not going to flood a postgame show with critical vibes here today. We'll talk about it objectively. But then something switched in the defense. The Chargers, they wanted to go forward on fourth and one.

Starting point is 00:04:11 Denver's defense did such a great job. The defensive lineman, the line. They did a great job stopping Justin Herbert on a quarterback sneak. And all of a sudden, that gives the Broncos offensive life. And what does Bowenicks do? He helps lead them down field. They have a couple of nice run plays. He had a nice little connection to Cortland Sutton.

Starting point is 00:04:26 He gets out of bounds, gets a first down. And then you find Cortland Sutton for a touchdown. And all of a sudden, it's like, all right, hey, 17, 17, the Broncos, the wheels are moving again. And then the defense, they come up big yet again. Sarah, they get a play where Zach Allen creates his pressure inside on Justin Herbert and the shoelace of one of the charges offensive lineman knocks the ball to Herbert's hands as he's going to the ground. So strip Zach, Zach Allen, and all of a sudden Denver gets the ball once again. Will Lutz kicks a field goal.

Starting point is 00:04:53 Now Denver's got a 20 to 17 lead. And then one, Brandon Jones, man, coming up big in a moment where the Broncos needed something, some life after generating some momentum, right? It seems like they'd do one thing positive, and then one or two negative things would happen. Jones comes away with the interception. Will Lutzboots in. What would be the winning field goal for Denver ultimately in this game? And I felt like it was big for the defense because they lost Talenoa who Fong in this game.

Starting point is 00:05:16 We don't have an update on him, but he was ruled out with an ankle injury. That to me was like a moment where it's like, all right, the Broncos defense found a way to inject life into this team here in the fourth quarter where it was really kind of slipping away from them. Yeah, that's how you take advantage of a team that's down as many players as the chargers are, right? on the offensive line at the wide receiver position, you start to kind of impose your will a little bit. You take the football away. You make Justin Herbert's life miserable back there.

Starting point is 00:05:42 And that's exactly what they did, right? So they did a lot of what we expected them to do defensively in this game. Now, yes, you had the one long touchdown run that was sort of the, you know, the black eye of the entire defensive output, I would say. But other than that, Cody, like, I was impressed with the way that they played Herbert in this game. I was impressed with the young corners. I was impressed with the pass rush. Bouncing back after not getting any sacks on Brock Purdy the week prior.

Starting point is 00:06:08 They found ways to get home. We saw Jonah Ellis back there making plays. How about the fourth down stop where Justin Herbert tried to sneak it? That was another huge play in this game that gave the Broncos offense another possession on the charger side of the field. So really, you look at this performance from the defense and in multiple ways. Like, Bo Nicks after the game, he's right. I mean, you probably don't win this game without the defense.

Starting point is 00:06:31 setting you up with all those short fields. If the Chargers were able to play keepaway and pin the offense back and force the Broncos to kind of matriculate down the field, it wasn't happening in this particular game. So the defense did exactly what they needed to do in order to kind of pick up the offense while it's been down. Yeah, and they needed to, right? Because coming into this match, we knew the Chargers had one of the better rushing offenses that I think the ninth ranked rushing offense in the entire NFL. And in this game, I mean, they came in and they ran for a total 155 yards. But I mean, I think at the expense of you giving up some big plays.

Starting point is 00:07:02 Like Justin Herbert got sacked five times in this game, Sarah, by Denver's defense. And obviously, J-Quan Macmillan coming up with the game ceiling one there on the final seconds. But in this game, you allow a couple of big runs. And excuse me, a correction here. It wasn't Omerian Hanton. It was Kamani Vital for the charters that had the 42-yard rushing touchdown.

Starting point is 00:07:20 But even Justin Herbert a couple of times, he had a design run to the right side where he got several yards. So the run game defense there for Denver at times, there were some inconsistencies, but ultimately it didn't lead. anything big outside of the touchdown run that they allowed there. So they got to find a way to put a cap on that because 155 yards on the ground, not ideal. And if this was a loss, it would definitely be one of the major pain points we're talking about

Starting point is 00:07:42 outside of the Broncos offensive struggles. But you also look at this defense, as we said, forcing five sacks on Justin Herbert. You know, third down, you want the numbers to be a little bit better. The charges finished five of 14, but they were old for two on fourth down. And ultimately, I think that decision there by the chargers came back to bite them and allowed the Broncos to kind of just pin their ears back. and get stops in this game. And they came up big in a game where they didn't have Riley Moss or Patrick Sartan the second.

Starting point is 00:08:07 So the Broncos D, they are heroes in this game here as Denver gets an important road win to improve the three and two against the Los Angeles charges. Broncos country, please let us know your thoughts on Denver's defensive performance here on Sunday and your vibe on them as we now get ready to shift our focus to Thursday night football. But coming up next, we'll talk about how Bonnicks and the Broncos often shook off a terrible, no good, awful start to this game. and we're able to finish the game strong and where they can improve from here. You get that here on today's episode of the show. Today's post game game show was brought to you about friends over there at Game Day Men's Health, a quiz on your phone and a box at your door that's not a clinic. When it comes to men's health figuring things out like your energy, your sleep,

Starting point is 00:08:45 your driving, how you feel day to day deserve a lot more than just a questionnaire. Game Day Men's Health is a real in-person men's health clinic with more than 430 locations across the U.S. and Canada. They also have five locations in the surrounding Denver, Colorado Springs area, and men can meet face-to-face with a licensed clinician, get labs drawn inside of the office, and you can receive initial results in as little as 15 minutes. Game Day, they look at the full picture, your symptoms and your lab results before they even develop a treatment plan. And because they continue testing and evaluating, care can be adjusted over time based on your data and your results. Convenience matters, but so does having a place that's built around men's health. Game Day has more than 430 clinics in office testing and a comfortable, discreet environment,

Starting point is 00:09:30 and new patients can book a complimentary test and consult. Book your complimentary test and consult at gameday men's health.com. Today's show is brought to you by our friends over there at Price Picks. Football is back, and that means Sundays are about to get a whole lot more interesting, and every week brings on new matchups, breakout players, big performances, and plenty of storylines to follow. Prize Picks is bringing out its best offer yet for kickoff and new users who sign up can get 100 and $50 in lineups if they win their first $5 lineup and prize picks. They're now available nationwide.

Starting point is 00:10:02 I'm looking at Parker Washington touchdowns and reception yards on price picks. This man's price tag simulally goes up every single week for the Jacksonville Jaguars. You can add him to your lineup inside of prize picks. Plus they have an injury protection policy. If a player in your lineup gets injured in the first half and doesn't return, your lineup, it can still cash. And the price picks injury protection policy helps. users win over $31 million in the 2026 season. So check it out here today.

Starting point is 00:10:30 Download the app today and use code locked on NFL to get $150 instantly in lineups. If you win your first $5 lineup prize picks, run your game. The Denver Broncos offense kind of sort of ish pick things up in the second half here. They took advantage of a couple opportunities. Thank goodness Broncos country because ultimately they had us in the first half. I ain't going to lie. You know what I'm saying?

Starting point is 00:10:53 It was a bad performance in the first half. by the Broncos offense. Although, Cody, I mean, a couple of first downs on the opening drive. Ultimately, they punted on that drive, which was disappointing. But they also got out to a 70-0-0 lead in this game. Yeah, there was, I mean, there was some progress. They handed it off to Adam Prentice. Thank goodness for that on a third and one.

Starting point is 00:11:13 But look, I mean, even getting out to a 7-0 lead, like, we talked about this. It's not just about starting fast for this Broncos offense. It's actually finding something sustainable. and I know we said we're going to be critical tomorrow, and it's just kind of naturally going to come out because we're kind of in the heat of the moment after the game here. But the bottom line is, offense found a way to close this thing out

Starting point is 00:11:36 and take advantage of at least some opportunities that the defense gave them in this one. It didn't feel like they were going to, right? Like the defense, it almost kind of felt like any time the defense would get a stop, at least early on this game. I'm talking about through the first three quarters, there's going to be some sort of breakdown either. You know, if the offense does something,

Starting point is 00:11:53 then, you know, there's a misfail goal. If they do something, then the defense gives up a big play. Like there was just one of those things. It just kind of felt like they were not playing complimentary football. And look, I'd say right now, the biggest concern with this team is the offense. We'll dive into a more critical analysis of Bo Nix and that there. But I mean, Sarah, I mean, you look at what the Broncos defense was able to overcome here in this game when you talk about the offense. The offense was one of 12 on third down in this game here specifically.

Starting point is 00:12:17 Like Denver could not early on in this game. They could not run the ball. Bo Nix continued to have the yips, which I think we can say here because it's going to tie into it because it's very relevant to what we talk about as the team kind of fed off the energy that the defense gave them late in the fourth quarter. Bo Nix seemingly didn't have any confidence for three and a half quarters and even at times in the fourth quarter of this game, Sarah, and it was teetering towards a little bit of a disaster here for this team. Now, what I will say is I felt like after the Broncos defense got that fourth down stop, Knicks in the offense, they moved the

Starting point is 00:12:49 ball downfield. Here's where I think things get a little promising, right? You want to take advantage of short field position because this was also an issue at times last year. Denver's defense would get those stops and those opportunities and the offense couldn't do anything with it. Here's how everything kind of boiled down here for the Broncos in their final three possessions of the game. They capitalized on obviously Denver getting the stop defensively on fourth down, but then they had a, if I'm not mistaken, a five play 35-yard drive where they were able to connect on Corton Sutton with the touchdown. Bow-nicks to Sutton for the touchdown there. That made the game 17-17.

Starting point is 00:13:20 Now you have some life. defense goes out there. They get the strip sack of Justin Herbert and all of a sudden you capitalize a five play, 22-yard drive, not ideal, right? You ultimately have to settle for a field goal. You only get one first down there. That gives you the Brandon Jones interception. It gives you the ball at the Chargers 34-yard line. Five-play, 26-yard drive where you take some time off the clock there and you kick a field goal that makes it 23 to 17 here, which ultimately helps the Broncos win. Now, I felt like they also ran the ball a few times really well here down the end stretch of this game in the fourth quarter. J.K. Dobbins specifically, who finished the game with 68 yards.

Starting point is 00:13:56 He had a 14-yard run there. There was a little bit of life and some momentum here. But my goodness, like, Sarah, this, the problem with this offense is you can't wait for it to happen late. You've got to find a way to do it sooner because before this, before their final drive, their three drives were a touchdown, field goal, field goal, it was disastrous. And I think I'll save this conversation a little bit for tomorrow show because it is going to be a little bit more hypercritical.

Starting point is 00:14:17 But Denver's offense in this game specifically averaged three-point. 9 yards per play. That is not going to be winning football here for this team. And they were able to get out of this because the defense came up strong. But in your opinion, how do you feel the offense kind of finished this game late and those final three drives? What did you like about it versus what we didn't like the entire game? Well, you started to actually see this offense execute some stuff, right? You started to see them execute the rollout to Cortland Sutton that you mentioned.

Starting point is 00:14:46 You started to see them execute their blocks in the running game. I mean, in the red zone, obviously Cortland Sutton, coming wide open. That was a great play design, and you kind of just force the charges into a busted coverage. You got so many new guys back there. It's miscommunication. So when you finally got the chargers into disadvantageous situations in terms of advantageous

Starting point is 00:15:06 for the Broncos offense, you're able to actually get some of those things on the back end where you have the upper hand. And you and I have talked about this. If the Broncos could just find a way to get a defense playing on their heels a little bit. They have the playmakers. They have the weapons to be able to take advantage of that. Now, if you're constantly, you know, playing like you're running through Quicksand and trying to do the longest developing plays possible and your offensive line is allowing guys through, like that's another part of the issue right there is that you don't, when you have so much

Starting point is 00:15:38 pressure coming through, even one of the best throws Bow Nicks made in this game, Cody, a throw to, I believe it was Jalen Waddle, that he was getting low by Tony Jefferson on the play. And I realized that's a blitz. Your running backs got to pick up the blitz, yada, yada. But if it wasn't the running backs, it was the old line. So obviously we were going to be critical of Bo Nix's play. And I agree with you. The confidence right now for him, it appears to be shot.

Starting point is 00:16:03 I hate to even say that. But that's what it looks like on the field. He does not look like he's playing with confidence. So it was nice to see the throw to Sutton. It was nice to see the throw to Waddle. It was nice to see him out there, you know, stepping up, take a hit, make a throw. And the Broncos just had such a conservative game plan that when they finally started executing

Starting point is 00:16:22 that conservative game plan, then turned into a game ending game plan. Well, you know what kind of stood out to me, right? Like you can change play callers all you want. But until the execution side of things changes, you're going to get similar results. And that was the theme here for the Broncos offense. I mean, I feel like I got to bring it up here in terms of Devers possession. I mean, Sarah, outside of the possession where I felt like it was their best possession that they've maybe had all year long.

Starting point is 00:16:47 It was on their second one, right? They had a four-play, 38-yard drive that ended in a touchdown because you had a nice throw from Bo Nix to Evan Ingram. J.K. Dobbins punched it in. Oh, hey, now you have a lead. Like the Broncos are playing with a 7-0 lead. Things are feeling good. From that point here, it went punt, punt, field goal, end of half, punt, fumble, punt to ultimately describe this game. But here's what stood out that was the most concerning.

Starting point is 00:17:11 Okay, outside of Denver's first two drives, where you mentioned, they had three first downs on their first drive. they had three first downs on their second drive. They went a stretch where they had a three-play drive for three-yard that resulted in a punt. They had a three-play drive for seven yards that resulted in a punt on the next drive. And then they had a 14-play, 46-yard drive that took probably eight minutes of possession off the clock that ended in a

Starting point is 00:17:33 field goal. That was great. But then it was a three-play, four-yard drive, a one-play-one-yard drive that resulted in a turnover by the offense. And then the defense gives up the 42-yard touchdown run there. that's where things kind of really snowballed. And it's like, man, the offense was so bad at that point, up to that point, outside of their second drive.

Starting point is 00:17:52 And really, I think they, you know, they managed the game well at the end. That's not going to be sustainable here. But here's what matters, right? Despite all that, Denver is three and two at this stretch right now where we said this first six game stretch is going to be very tough for them. They are three and two. And they're not even playing, at least offensively. They're not even playing remotely to the potential that they can.

Starting point is 00:18:13 And that right there, I think, is what's most. frustrating in the eyes of Broncos country and seeing what Bo Nitch has looked like through five games, that's what concerns the fan base the most. It's frustrating, but it's also the silver lining and maybe the reason for optimism, Cody, is the fact that this offense has it in them somewhere. And I know that we've talked about, well, the running game needs to get going, well, the pass protection needs to be better. Well, the receivers need to get open.

Starting point is 00:18:36 Well, they got to catch passes and not drop them, which those are all valid issues, 100%. But ultimately, number 10's got to put this thing on his back. I can't wait to talk more about that. I think it's up to Bo. It really is. This team goes as Bo Nix goes, at least offensively. And so you could tell because his confidence seems down, because he doesn't seem like he's got the it factor.

Starting point is 00:19:00 I know he's made clutch plays. I know he's made clutch throws. I'm not saying he's done nothing good this whole year. What I am saying, though, is he doesn't look like the same guy out there. He's not running the same way. He's not escaping the pocket and making throws on the run in the same way. He's not even letting it rip downfield the same that we've seen, even in that divisional round against Buffalo,

Starting point is 00:19:19 where, man, you could tell, like, he was on another level at that point. And you're feeling like, okay, this is the dude. This is the franchise guy. Well, the first five games of this season, there's been a mixed bag, but it's been mostly bad amongst the mixed, if I can be fair in saying that. And I think that Bo, he's got to be better. He is the catalyst for everything for this offense.

Starting point is 00:19:42 And he's got to put it on. his shoulders. You want balance in the run game? 100%. Great. You want better pass protection? Great. Catching passes? Great. Bow Nix has to be the catalyst for all of it. He really is the straw that stirs the drink, man. And for this offense. And look, Brockos country, we're not trying to be negative on Bo Nix. Like, if anybody here, people are like, oh, you're never, you never hold

Starting point is 00:20:02 bow accountable. I feel like, I feel like I'm one of the only people on the local beats here that can have an objective conversation. I can say, Bo Nix isn't playing good. But yes, the offense also has 10 other different issues. And all of it, seem to affect Bo, but there's things that Bo also has to overcome, right? We're not going to make excuses for Bo, but it's like, I feel like you cannot have a logical conversation about Bo Nix without

Starting point is 00:20:23 it being doom and gloom or you guys are homers, like, no one can just stay in the middle. That's what I try to do, but let's save it for tomorrow because I feel like that's going to be a spicy episode here. I'm excited about it here. You know what, Broncos country? A win is a win. Once again, it doesn't matter if you win by an inch or a mile, the Broncos

Starting point is 00:20:39 are three and two, and now we're going to hand out game balls from Denver's victory on Sunday, against the Chargers. What's going on, everybody? My name is Ross Jackson, host of the Lockdown at at Saints Podcast. And today's Lockdown episode is brought to by our friends at Basque and Lather. I've been using Bask and Lather's all natural, 100% organic hair care products for my beard for a couple years now. And it's been a lifesaver because I used to have some bad beard care habits. I'm talking over-the-counter shampoo and the beard type stuff that created this brittle, scratchy and uncomfortable beard that I just had to wear around all the time. But now the game

Starting point is 00:21:11 done changed. Thanks to Bask and Lather. I got their beard care starter kit, which gave me shampoo, conditioner, oil balm, and their hair growth stimulator formula as well. And now my beard is full. It's soft but strong. And the confidence is on 10. And it's all thanks to Basque and Lather. Explore viral bestsellers and products of healthier hair of all types from Basque and Lather.

Starting point is 00:21:35 Go to Baskin LatherCode.com and use the promo code locked on for 20% off. That's 20% off at Baskin Lather, CO.com. Com code locked on. Today's show is also brought to you by friends over there at Fandu folks. And this season, Fandu wants to welcome you to the most rewarding NFL season ever, only on Fandu, America's number one sports book. How rewarding are we talking? More rewarding than a touchdown with time expiring,

Starting point is 00:21:59 maybe more rewarding than an 18-point comeback. How about more rewarding if you're Jacksonville Jaguars fan than a Cam Little walkoff field go in London this past week? Well, this season, Fandu is making the excitement go beyond what happens on the field with the all new Fanduil Rewards Club featuring exclusive offers, surprises, and so much more every week. All you have to do is open up the Fandu Sportsbook app. Check it out to see what's waiting inside for you.

Starting point is 00:22:23 Obviously, week five is in the books, and we're on to week seven. The NFL gives you something new to watch every single week. A new slate of games, including a Bronco Seahawks game on Thursday night football. But now Fandu is also giving fans something new to check for every week as well. The Rewards Club has exclusive offers and surprises, so it's worth opening up the app to see what's waiting. inside for you. Get in on the action and make this your most rewarding season ever with Fandul.

Starting point is 00:22:47 Visit Fandul.com to get started. The Broncos are coming out of Sunday's game, Victoria's at 3 and 2 and Thursday night football's ahead. But before you can move to Thursday, you've got to recognize the guys who stood out and played the most meaningful minutes and had the most impactful moments from Sunday's win. We'll get into our game balls here in a second. I want to say thank you so much to all the everydayers out there in Broncos country. Thanks for tuning in, making us your first listen. However you choose to do so here on Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day, also the number one sports podcast network in the country. And if you want to hear this show completely ad-free, make sure you check out the Everydayer Club,

Starting point is 00:23:21 lockdownbrancos.com. You get an ad-free audio version of the show, plus you get exclusive all 22 film breakdowns and so much more. And you won't want to miss this week's here. So make sure you subscribe lockdownbracos. That supercast.com. Sarah, let's go out and hand out game balls here. Where do we start? Because I feel like there were a couple of contributors here, notable, and even kind of under the radar,

Starting point is 00:23:41 are unsung heroes that I feel like deserve a game ball recognition. Well, let's start with the young corners, right? Because stepping in for Pat Sertan and Riley Moss is not an easy task, but Jada Baron and Chris Abrams drain, they were up to the task in this game. I know that once again, chargers are down, some receivers, no doubt about it. And obviously, they didn't have their best guys out there for Justin Herbert. But you know what? Like, I think they felt like that was a matchup they could take advantage of as saying,

Starting point is 00:24:08 hey, the Broncos got young corners out there. we can try to at least exploit that. Well, Jadae Barron and Chris Abramsdain made sure that wasn't going to happen. And so I think game balls to them, Cody, for stepping up in a big spot, it's not easy to lose a starter on defense in any position. But when you lose two guys that you rely on heavily, especially Pat Sartan, who's the best in the game, I mean, those are big shoes to fill.

Starting point is 00:24:30 So I think Jadae Barron, Chris Abrams Drain, those guys executed well. They played really well. And I think for me, they get game balls, even though, like you said, it kind of might be a little bit. under the radar from this one. Yeah, look, I'm going to go with Nick Benito here. Look, I think everybody in Broncos country, we've been getting messages, tweets, people are like, where's Nick Benito, man? It's like, hey, he's faced a lot of attention. But in today's game, granted, yes, it was against a patchwork offensive line, but that's exactly what you want to see

Starting point is 00:24:54 Nick Benito do, right? Two sacks for him in this game specifically on Sunday, two quarterback hits and he had three tackles for a loss behind the line of scrimmage. I felt like Benito was everywhere in this game specifically for Denver. I'm going to give him one. I feel like he deserves it. That two sack performance is big. And he came up big when the Broncos needed him to in a couple of key third down situations as well. That right there, that's what we talk about. You want impact plays, but Nito, in my opinion, deserves a game ball. Yeah, how about Brandon Jones as well, getting the interception that you mentioned, kind of dropping into that zone coverage after Talano, Hufango went down. You're really relying on Brandon Jones to come out there and make a play

Starting point is 00:25:32 with Devin Kee replacing Hufanga. But Brandon Jones, two passes, defense, obviously had the one interception in this game and that was a game-changing play. It was certainly at a huge moment for the Broncos when they needed it the most. Your defense comes through once again. Brandon Jones, I think he gets a game ball for sure for that interception. I think Zach Allen should get one for sure. I mean, Zach has been a consistent pressure creator. I mean, obviously he did have the sack on Herbert.

Starting point is 00:25:55 I want to give him one just by default of what he and Nick Benito did in this game. Unsung under the radar type of guy here, J.L. Skinner, special teams. Man, I felt like he was everywhere. And you and I were actually, you brought this up in one. one of the group chats that were in just talking about his play. Because it seems like any time there was a play, the Chargers returner at one point, I felt like Darius Davis, I'm not mistaken. I felt like he had one play where he could have gotten upfield.

Starting point is 00:26:19 And then J.L. Skinner just grabs him, wraps his arms around him and brings him down for a big losses. He was kind of backtracking, you know, kind of going negative east west versus north-south. And he took advantage of that. I felt like he was great. And you know what? Attached the special teams one. Jeremy Croshaw gets one. If we had to get out of special teams one, J.O. Skinner, Jeremy Croshaw.

Starting point is 00:26:37 even though he made two field goals, I'm not giving one to Will Lutz. I think we have to have a conversation on that tomorrow. I agree, Cody. I mean, Will Lutz with the missed field goal, which came off of a absolutely awesome and perfectly timed Marvin Mims' punt return, right? I mean, that was just, that was a disastrous sequence of events. When you needed the offense to come through, they couldn't get anywhere. Will Lutz misses a kick.

Starting point is 00:27:00 It's just like, all right. So we're filling up a bingo card of disaster for the Broncos. And yes, Will Lutz has kind of made a bit of a habit of that. so can't have that. But I think I'll give my last one here to JK Dobbins. Cody, obviously some tough sledding in this game. But I know he was excited after the game. He had a touchdown in this game.

Starting point is 00:27:17 He had some big runs late in this game as well. And I think JK kind of what we saw in the second half, maybe mostly in the fourth quarter, running like JK Dobbins a little bit again. And go figure the blocking in front of him was better. But I also think we saw a little bit of giddy up in his step. I think we saw some nice cuts. I think we saw him run with a little more purpose.

Starting point is 00:27:36 that was what we needed from JK in this game. See a little sign of life from him after it looked like he was maybe not playing at 100% he kind of even acknowledged that as well but man that was nice to see in the fourth quarter especially. Denver just kind of creep their way over the

Starting point is 00:27:52 100 yard rushing mark this game. It was super weird though. RJ RV only had three total rushing touches in this game and I felt like he didn't get his first carry. I felt like till midway through the second quarter kind of felt like that. That was really weird. Let's go back and watch the film study on all that. But I feel like if you are going to give any offensive game ball out to anybody,

Starting point is 00:28:10 I do feel like you got to give it to JK in that situation. I think that's a fair one. You know, Courtney got his first touchdown. He, you know, on that touchdown drive the Demer idea, that one catch. Then he had the touchdown. That's obviously great. Hopefully that can get him going throughout the way. But my goodness, it's hard to hand out one on the offensive side. I think JK's probably the most fitting one in this situation here in Broncos country. Obviously let us know who gets your game. Give us your game balls for offense, defense and special teams, and we'll feature them here, obviously, on the show. We appreciate you so much for rocking with us here.

Starting point is 00:28:40 That'll wrap up our post-game show. We got the Lockdown Broncos squad show coming a little bit later on here this evening. And then tomorrow's episode of the show, it's time to be critical here. Bo Nix and his confidence seem completely gone. How does he get it back? And what is the real issue here with Bo this season? We'll dive deep into that on tomorrow's episode of the show.

Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - SURGE: Denver Broncos DEFENSE Delivers In Fourth Quarter Comeback vs. Chargers

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.