Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - TRIPLE THREAT: Denver Broncos NEED to UNLEASH Three RBs vs. Los Angeles Rams
Episode Date: September 22, 2026The Denver Broncos could unleash a three-back attack against the Los Angeles Rams. Can J.K. Dobbins, RJ Harvey, and Jonah Coleman power a physical game plan and keep Matthew Stafford off the field?Cod...y Roark and Sayre Bedinger break down Denver’s downhill rushing approach after what worked in Week 2 vs. the Jaguars. Evan Engram and Nate Adkins emerge as key pieces to watch at tight end against a Rams defense that features Aaron Donald, while Bo Nix’s connection with the tight ends could open the offense more in Week 3. They also discuss Courtland Sutton’s quiet start, his 25.5 passer rating when targeted, and whether Jaylen Waddle’s breakout can create more one-on-one opportunities for Denver’s longstanding big threat playmaker.Cody Roark is a credentialed beat reporter for Mile High Sports and provides boots-on-the-ground coverage of the Broncos daily in person. Sayre Bedinger is one of Broncos Country's longest-tenured voices, writing for Predominantly Orange. Together, they bring Broncos Country the most in-depth and objective coverage of the Denver Broncos every single day, year round.📸 - Ron Chenoy — Imagn ImagesWANT MORE DAILY DENVER BRONCOS CONTENT?For all of the latest Denver Broncos news today --Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms🎧 https://lockedonpodcasts.com/podcasts/locked-on-broncos/Locked On NFL League-Wide: Every Team, Fantasy, Draft, & More🎧 https://lockedonpodcasts.com/leagues/nfl/📲 Cody Roark Twitter / (https://twitter.com/codyroarknfl)📲 Cody Roark Instagram / (https://instagram.com/codyroarknfl)📲 Sayre Bedinger Twitter / (https://twitter.com/sayrebedinger)Everydayer Club If you never miss an episode, it’s time to make it official. Join the Locked On Everydayer Club and get access to ad-free audio version of Locked On Broncos, All-22 Film Breakdown, and access to our members-only Discord, and more — all built for our most loyal fans. 📲 https://lockedonbroncos.supercast.com/TEXT LINE: Support the show and interact with us on Denver Broncos rumors, News, Game Previews, Q&A's, and more.📲 TEXT: (720) 580-5759📢 Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!OdooGreat organizations win because operations matter. And that’s why you should get Odoo. Try for free today at https://Odoo.com/lockedon.Butcher BoxIf you're looking for an easier way to get great meals on the table, give ButcherBox a try.Go to https://ButcherBox.com/LOCKEDONNFL to get $20 off your first box, plus your choice of free ribeye, new york strip, or filet mignon in every box for a year — with free shipping always.IndeedListeners of this show get a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to help give your job the premium placement it deserves at http://Indeed.com/podcast.PrizePicksVisit https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONNFL and use code LOCKEDONNFL and get $150 if you win your first $5 lineup!KALSHIToday's episode is brought to you by Kalshi. For a limited time, Download Kalshi and use code Locked On to get $25 when you trade $25. Kalshi. Trade what’s next.GametimeToday's episode is brought to you by Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDON for $20 off your first purchase.FanDuelGet three hundred fifty dollars in Bonus Bets — GUARANTEED — when you bet five dollars every day for seven days. Join all the action at https://FANDUEL.COMFANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcript
Discussion (0)
The Denver Broncos got some great news surrounding J.K. Dobbins and R.J. Harvey. Harvey
and this might be the week that they can involve three running backs.
You are locked on Broncos. Your daily Denver Broncos podcast.
Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day.
Happy Tuesday, Broncos country, Cody Roach, Sarah Beninger.
We're two of the longest tenured voices in Broncos country.
Together we bring you this show every single day.
Thanks for making us your first listen.
As we talk about how the Broncos can involve three running backs against the Rams here in
week three, that might be the biggest key to success for them in a tough matchup. Plus,
while the Broncos tight ends might be more involved this upcoming week against LA and how they
can actually use that to their advantage. And then we're going to talk about one of the more
important topics right now in Broncos country, how they can get Cortland Sutton going here
after a quiet first two weeks. The NFL regular season today show is brought to you by our friends
over there at Game Time. Download the GameTime app, create an account and use code locked on for $20
off your first purchase. Sarah, let's get into it. Man, I tell you, when you're facing a team
I mean, a stingy, aggressive defense like the Los Angeles Rams,
I feel like the urgency to use more running backs.
I feel like it amplifies here.
And the Broncos, they got some good news surrounding J.K. Dobbins and R.J. Harvey,
where Sean Payton told us on his Monday conference call,
he believes that the notion or the indication he gave is that Devers going to be fine
at the running back position coming into Sunday's game.
I saw J.K. after the game, he looked like he was in good spirits,
talking with everybody, moving around well.
and then RJ Harvey practiced last week despite the hamstring.
So it could be trending towards having their top three backs healthy this week against the Rams.
And I think there's two factors here that really play into this being a big deal.
Number one is in week one against Kansas City Chiefs.
They saw exactly what not to do with all three of those guys healthy and available.
And in week two in their win against the Jacksonville Jaguars,
I think they started to kind of figure out, hey, this is the formula where we found our stride.
Sean Payton said something to that effect.
You know, when he was talking about the late game kind of surge for the running game
and figuring out the concepts that worked, I can't remember the exact wording that he used there.
But essentially, the Broncos kind of figured out, hey, this is working in this game.
And you can't help but think you're going to see quite a bit more of that against a team like the L.A.
Rams who, hey, you know, imitation, the sincerest form of flattery, right?
Well, the L.A. Rams love to use multiple tight-end sets.
they absolutely are the at the forefront of the NFL when it comes to 12 personnel, 13 personnel.
Heck, I think they got like seven tight ends in their roster.
They've used back-to-back second round picks or something on the tight end position.
So they like that position.
And so the Broncos can go out there and kind of give them a taste of their own medicine
by bringing this three-back, three-headed monster, we hope, to the table.
And this will be, in my opinion, the first time we're going to see what the Broncos do with not only
these three guys healthy, but really understanding, hey, this is what works within this
offensive game plan and we can really utilize their skill sets to the fullest potential.
Well, and I think one of the things that they can do that could get the run game going,
outside of there's going to be situations that the Broncos come out in 11 personnel, right,
one running back, one tight end, three wide receivers.
And they come out and they try to run based on, I mean, the combination of gap scheme runs that
they like, zone blocking, trying to set some things up.
I think the Broncos have to find a way to attack downhill in this game.
think against this Rams defense, and once again, Aaron Donald, having already played just one game,
I wonder what this looks like specifically for how the Broncos may try to look at this game plan.
Like, do you try to attack Aaron Donald?
He's been out of the game a little long, Sarah.
I would go right after him.
But the Broncos can't afford, I think, to try to just continue to stretch things to the outside on every
run play.
You have to be able to get positive yards in the A and the B gaps there.
So I think that's going to be key.
I also think this is a week, Sarah, where maybe the Broncos come out and they come out,
with two backs on the field at the same time together.
We saw a little bit of that last year with J.K. Dobbins and R.J. Harvey. Denver does that
a little bit now when they have Adam Prentice up, right? He counts as that 22 personnel where they
have two backs in the back field, except as a fullback. It's kind of natural. He'll always get that
designation no matter what. But I'm talking about the Broncos could find a way to get J.K. and
Jonah Coleman on the field together at the same time. You can do certain things off of that with both
of those guys. JK. Pretty solid
and pass protection for the most part. Jonah,
very solid in pass protection for the most part.
Or the Broncos can even go four
running backs in this game. Sarah, maybe Tyler
Badey, they have a four-headed rushing
attack, right? Sean Payne says, ah, it's generally hard
to feed three. You can do two, but you can't really feed three.
Watch Davis said, I'm going to feed four
in this game. Very unlikely.
But I think you have
to run three running backs in this game against
L.A., especially if RJ's coming off
the hamstring, J.K.'s coming off the hamstring.
there is no reason why you shouldn't.
Yeah, I agree.
And I think that what we saw from Jonah Coleman,
obviously in week two was one of the most encouraging signs we've seen at the running back position.
And again,
it's not just because Jonah's good,
but we believe that he is.
But it's also because the Broncos kind of figured out what's working for the offense
and how to execute properly,
especially in that late game,
four-minute offense.
That was spectacular stuff.
And that's exactly what we hoped for going into this season.
So now it's can you plug and play
these other backs. And we know the Broncos are going to get these guys involved in the passing game.
I mean, that's RJ Harvey's calling card. Tyler Badegh, obviously had a really nice catch and run
against the Jacksonville Jaguar week two. And we've seen Jonah Coleman already as well getting
involved in the past game. So those guys bring so much to the table. It does keep defenses on their
heels when they're in the game anyway. But if you're executing in the running game, it's just going to be,
it's going to make this offense so much more dynamic. And I
know what we saw in the second half.
We hope, man, we hope we can see that more this whole season.
But generally speaking, I mean, when you get into this, just the first quarter of this game against the L.A. Rams.
I remember, Cody, remember that game against New Orleans a couple of years ago,
Bo Nix's rookie season where I think Thursday night.
Yeah, Thursday night game.
And then there was a game that season against the L.A. Chargers where the Broncos did involve three backs.
and it was early on in a game.
I mean, it's just, hey, pick your poison type of situation.
Give these guys the ball, start executing right away,
and see if the defense can stop you.
I mean, the Rams are talented.
They're going to be able to fly around.
They're going to be able to make plays.
So you have to do your best to impose your will once again.
And if you can run to the level of, you know,
the degree of success that we saw against the Jaguars,
I mean, you could do that against anybody because that's the number one run
defense in the NFL dating back to last season.
Yeah.
And I think as well, you can't just come into this game and say, you know what?
We're just going to get into this shootout style of game against Matthew Stafford and the Rams, right?
Like if the Broncos can't run the ball, but they're throwing it, let's say they're having success throwing it.
I don't think against this Rams team, you want to get into a shootout with Matthew Stafford and company.
And I think the Broncos, to a point of what we're talking about here, and this will kind of extend into our tight end conversation coming up here in a minute.
But what the Rams do well is embracing that heavy personnel usage.
And it works for them because they can run.
run and where defenses down, hit you with the play action.
I mean, I'm looking at it right now, going back to week one for the Rams against the 49ers,
they had 32 plays out of 57 offensive snaps and 11 personnel.
Their next highest was 21 plays out of 13 personnel and only four plays out of 12.
So they love 11 and 12 personnel.
This is one of those games where you look at the Broncos first two couple of trends.
And this is all according to our friends over there, True Media, against the Jaguars in week two,
30 plays on 59 snaps in 11 personnel, 12 plays out of 12 personnel, and only four plays out of 13.
So 13 is not quite the Broncos bread and butter yet.
I think part of it is due to them trying to figure out how to block it up and getting that
personnel group a little bit more, but 12 personnel is where we saw this Denver offense have
success, including on both of Jonah Coleman's 12-yard runs that he had in that fourth quarter
to help the Broncos ice this game against the Jaguars.
and you saw Quinn Miners physically mall and dominate,
where he's grabbing a defensive lineman,
and he's burying him four and a half yards to the left,
and he's the right guard.
You see Garrett Bulls sealing off a block.
Like Denver just blocked it really well.
It felt like that is the rhythm that they had.
And then on Jonah Coleman's touchdown run they had in the red zone,
they came out in 13 personnel,
and they ended up scoring,
but they pulled Ben Powers.
They brought Nate Adkins backside to kick out the outside.
And so everyone else is down blocking,
Powers is pulling and you're following right behind him
and he's getting up to Travis Hunter.
I mean, this is the formula,
sir. The Broncos, they tapped into it
and if they want to win on Sunday night against the Rams,
they might have to tap into that strategy here once again
and understand that this is going to be the way
that this Broncos offense finds sustainability for an entire season.
Broncos, country, let's know your thoughts here on today's episode
of the show about Denver involving the top three running backs this week
against the Rams.
And how would you do it?
If you were an offensive coordinator, Davis Webb,
how would you utilize Jonah Coleman, J.K. Dobbins, and RJ Harvey,
if all three of them are available for this game.
But coming up next, we're going to tell you why the Broncos tight ends,
including Evan Ingram, Nate Adkins.
They could be a bigger key to victory here for the Broncos this week,
and we'll tell you why.
David Harrison here at the Lotton Commanders podcast.
Talk about Butcher Box.
I'm someone who's always trying to make sure I'm getting enough protein.
For me, that gets a whole lot easier when I've got a freezer full of the good stuff,
and I'm not stuck trying to figure out what to do for dinner.
And I like having that quality protein ready to go.
whether it's for the whole family or it's just for myself so I can avoid that dreaded takeout order.
And Butcher Box delivers 100% grass-fed beef, organic chicken, wild-caught seafood, and more.
All sorts to standards, they can actually tell you about they've already done the work.
So all you have to do is figure out what's for dinner.
So if you're looking for an easier way to get great meals on the table, give Butcher Box a try.
Go to butcherbox.com slash locked on NFL.
You get $20 off your first box.
Plus, you get your choice of free rib-eye.
That's the way I went.
New York strip or filet mignon in every box for a year,
and you always get free shipping.
Always.
That's butcherbox.com slash locked on NFL.
Again, butcherbox.com slash locked on NFL.
Make sure you use our link so they know we sent you.
Today's show is also brought to you by friends over there at Kau Shia.
New football season always brings the questions.
Who makes the playoffs?
Who wins their division and who takes home the title at the end of the season?
Cali, America's number one prediction market platform lets you trade those predictions in a live market all NFL season long.
And heading into week three, the Debra Broncos, they're taking on the Los Angeles Rams.
And right now on Kaushy, the Broncos are trading at 48% probability to beat the Rams on Sunday night football, meaning a $100 trade pays out $209 if the Broncos beat Matthew Stafford and the Rams this upcoming Sunday.
And on Kaushy, you're trading against Pearsonian live market, meaning there's no house.
the probability changes. You could buy in and out of your position, trade the draft pick,
the game, and more on Kaushi. Download Kauci and use code locked on to get $25 when you trade.
$25. KALS-H-I, Kauci trade what's next. 18 plus only restrictions and eligibility
requirements apply event contract trading involves risk and may not be suitable for all investors.
Kau-she products are not available in all jurisdictions. Prices, values, and available markets may
differ from those mentioned. For more information, see kowshee.com.
We've seen the tight ends for the Denver Broncos play.
Pivotal roles in the first two games,
but they might be in line for an even bigger role
against the L.A. Rams on Sunday night football.
Evan Ingram came through,
big touchdown in week one,
one of the only good plays for the Broncos in week one.
Had another nice catch in week two.
Nate Adkins, though, Cody.
I mean, you just mentioned it on a block that he had in this game.
He also scored a touchdown, caught a touchdown pass.
Also caught one of the explosives from Bonix,
one of nine players on the Denver Broncos offense.
on Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars with a play of 10 plus yard.
Pretty impressive stuff from the offense in terms of just their second half surge.
But I agree with this sentiment.
You and I were talking about this in preparation for the show.
The tight ends are going to have a much bigger role.
I think going forward against the L.A. Rams especially, though,
because you believe that these guys getting more involved can give you that balance
that you so desperately need offensively.
Bowenix likes throwing to these guys.
these guys have done a great job making plays for the quarterback.
And in the first, I guess I would say in the Jacksonville game,
maybe not the first two games,
but especially against Jacksonville,
man, we saw these tight ends opening things up for those backs that we saw.
We talked about it up top.
We want to get all three involved in this game.
You want to do it?
You need these tight ends to help you out big time.
Yeah, and it seems like Evan Ingram has earned the trust of Davis Webb
and Sean Payton because Evans's primarily playing in
and a lot of key passing down situations,
but also in the run blocking game.
I think Evan has done a really good job of embracing that role.
I think part of the issue last year,
he even made mention of this that he didn't know when his number was going to get called last year,
you know, throughout the entire season.
This year, he's on the field more consistently.
And so I think he's staying fresh.
He's warm.
He's not coming in cold off the sideline.
Granted, it's hot in Denver right now and it's pretty hot in Kansas City week one.
But is hyper, like theoretically speaking from a scheme standpoint,
you want to come in hot and in rhythm.
That's what I like about Evan, man.
And here's the thing Evan doesn't power.
Like Evan blocked his tail off and you know what ended up happening?
He got rewarded with a nice 17-yard catch where both threw it, evading pressure.
Evan makes a tough catch, which I think the degree of difficulty of that one, because it's low and he's going to the ground.
He's got a defender right underneath him and he's just focused on it.
Whereas last year, Evan coming in cold in that situation, he had a lot of drop passes on something very similar.
So you love to see Evan do that.
But man, I think right now the most underrated name in that tight end room who's doing a lot of the dirty work.
And I don't want to disregard Adam Troutman.
But I think the guy that you mentioned, Nate Adkins, Sarah, he plays such an important role in fully healthy.
And we were going through this entire offseason going back and forth when looking at Justin Jolie and looking at guys like Caleb Loner.
Do the Broncos move on from a guy like Adkins in favor of one of these younger guys?
And I'm so glad that they did it.
I'm very glad that they didn't because Nate does the dirty work for this office.
offense and on special teams. He plays it as well and he's fully healthy. But man, on his touchdown,
I did a film breakdown. So everybody who's in every day, every day or club member can access it.
It's on there. But he comes out and he releases off the line of scrimmage up to the nickel corner and he gives
the indication like he's going to block. The corner sees it because they sell the play action fake with Jonah Coleman.
And then he gets out to the flat, catches it. The corner is looking in the backfield too long.
he burns Nate Atkins burns the corner on that play for the touchdown.
And then you mentioned that one crossing play underneath where Bo has to reverse backside,
like play action throwing to his left.
He did a great job on that as well.
Nate is this guy who I think secretly does the dirty work where you can pull him
backside to kick out an outside lineback or a defensive end or a blitzing guy or you can lead
him up, like almost kind of like a fullback.
He truly is that hybrid guy.
I didn't think he had a good game against the Chiefs.
Nobody on the Broncos did.
I came away from after watching the film
thinking Nate Adkins is going to be a very big key for the Broncos success,
as is Evan Ingram.
And that's not to discount Adam Troutman.
Nate has a pretty darn good, like, well-rounded skill set at the tight end position, right?
I mean, obviously he can block.
He can play special teams.
But he's always kind of shown soft hands in the passing game as well.
He's shown a little bit of big playability throughout the course of his time with the Broncos.
and he's got a lot of experience in this offense.
He knows what he's doing out there.
To the points that you've been making as well, Cody,
this season, it's only two-game sample so far,
but Evan Ingram playing roughly 56.7% of the snaps,
Adam Trotman, 52.2%.
And then we have Nate Adkins at 31.86%.
So these guys are splitting time, obviously,
but we're seeing a huge jump from Evan Ingram.
Last year it was, what, 42% or 43%?
Something like that.
So that's a big jump for him.
Like you mentioned, he is in the circle of trust, you know, for those who the Jack Burns circle of trust,
guess who's back in the circle of trust, Greg.
But yes, I love it.
I love to see it because we need Evan out there to threaten the defense.
That's another big thing with this is you can live in 12, 13 personnel.
But remember last year, it was like Mercedes Lewis out there.
And the Broncos were not utilizing Evan a ton.
They were utilizing an extra offensive lineman a lot of times when they go 13 personnel.
So when you've got Mercedes-Luiz, an extra offensive lineman, Adam Troutman,
Cortland Sutton typically out there at receiver,
I mean, you're just basically begging for a defense to come and attack the line of scrimmage
because you're going to run the ball because who are you going to throw to?
When you got one or two guys running routes and nobody creating any separation,
it just doesn't give you options.
And that's why you and I, this is maybe a little rabbit trail here.
But this is why you and I have kind of complained a little bit about in the first two games,
third and short situations, the Broncos going empty backfield because they're kind of telegraphing
what they're doing here.
That's why you have the variety of personnel that you have at your disposal right now so that
you cannot telegraph what you're doing offensively.
And so when you have the right guys out there at tight end, guys making plays in the past
game like Evan, like Nate, man, that really changes the way that a defense goes and
tries to attack you.
And that gives you an edge in the running game because if Evan and Nate,
are out there. Now they think, well, they could throw it at these guys. So I like what the options that
they've been presenting, you know, even in just this Jacksonville game as a sample.
I'm curious to see how they adjust based on the front that the Rams come out defensively.
Because I think in this game specifically, even if Miles Garrett was playing, you would have to
probably live with heavier personnel, extra offensive linemen and a couple of tight ends just because
of Miles on one end, Aaron on the Earth. Now we know Miles Garrett, obviously he's on IR for the first
part of the season here for the Rams, but Aaron Donald should be good to go.
Aaron Donald should be able to play this game.
And even without those guys, this Rams defense, granted it had Jared Verst before he was
traded.
This was a very good Rams defense last season.
I know week one, their travel to Australia was a little bit of an anomaly, but this is
a dangerous Rams team.
And this is one of those teams.
I feel like the Broncos offense can't afford to get off to a slow start against.
And I really think coming out here involving your tight ends early, that might force the
safeties to cheat up a little bit, right?
because if let's say you're hitting Nate Adkins and Evan Ingram on on hitches or curls or crossers or out routes,
kind of the same stuff that they did a little bit against the Jaguars here in terms of the routes that they ran.
Well, now let's maybe that nickel or the safety starts to cheat up a little bit.
Jalen Waddle downfield because he can beat the one-on-one coverage, right?
Obviously the Rams went out and they invested in their cornerback room here.
There's offseason Trent McDuffie going over from Kansas City.
This is one of those games where the Broncos have to come out there and they have to dictate certain matchups.
And I think the tight ends will be a very big player
and that come into fruition here on Sunday night football.
It's all good on theory.
It's all good on paper.
We'll see if the Broncos ultimately decide to come out and do here.
But Broncos country, let us know your thoughts here on Denver's tight end.
And coming into week three against the Rams.
But coming up next, Sarah and I are going to talk about something that we feel like is very important.
We got to see Jalen Waddle get going in week two when out in week three.
Not only does Waddle need to continue to get going,
but Corlin Sutton has to become a major focal point for the offense as well
because they need that 1A, 1B combination.
Because the Rams, they got two guys themselves in Pooka Nakuwa and Devante Adams.
Today's episode of the show is brought to you by our friends over there at Fandu.
And Fandu is America's number one sportsbook.
And right now, they want you to get in on the NFL action because this is the most rewarding NFL season ever on Fandu.
How rewarding are we talking?
More rewarding than a touchdown with time expiring, more rewarding than an 18-point comeback,
maybe even more rewarding than an offensive lineman catching a touchdown.
Well, the Broncos involved Alex Paucheschi and potentially catching a touchdown this week against the Rams.
Could he be in any time touchdown score?
Well, this season, Fandu is making the excitement go beyond what happens on the field with the all-new fan duels club featuring exclusive offers, surprises, and so much more.
Every week, just open up the Fandu app to see what's waiting for you and get it on the action here for the NFL week three slate where the Debra Broncos coming into Sunday night football against the Rams at home.
They're two and a half point home underdog.
against Matthew Stafford and Company.
Can the Broncos win at home we've seen a happy before,
especially in primetime moments, big game on Sunday.
So make this your most rewarding season ever with Fandual.
Visit Fanduil.com to get started.
Today's episode of the show is also brought to you by friends over there at the
Game Time app.
The NFL is full of games that you plan for all season long that you want to go see.
But sometimes the best memories come from the games you almost miss
or the games you just go see last minute.
Game time makes it easy to find tickets to NFL matchups that you want to see.
with prices that include fees.
So you know what your total cost is up front.
You can browse games.
You can see a panoramic view from your seat before you buy.
So if you want to go to Sunday night football and see the Broncos and Rams,
you can see what your seat inside and Power Field a mile high is going to be specifically
inside of the app.
Plus they have zone deals that let you choose the section and game time.
They choose the seats to help you save even more money.
Whether it's a rivalry game, a matchup featuring a player that you must see in person
or an underdog that's ready to make some noise.
Game time makes getting to the game simple.
Think about the game on the game.
the schedule that you absolutely don't want to miss and go see it today. Get your friends together,
get your tickets and tell them it's game time. Download the game time app, create an account
and use code locked on for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Again, create an account and
use code locked on for $20 off. Portland Sutton needs to see more targets coming into
week three of the NFL season and he played his part in weeks one and weeks two, but the Broncos
need to unlock the duo of Cortland Sutton and Jalen Waddle together in the threat that they can
present to NFL defenses.
Coast Country. Thanks for rocking with us here on the Lockdown Podcast Network.
Making it your first listen.
You know, the Lockdown Podcast Network. It's your team every day.
Also, the No.1 Sports Podcast Network in the country.
And a special shout out to all you every dayers out there in Brockco's country.
We appreciate you for rocking with us here.
Sarah, there's ways that Cortland Sutton, I would say, through the first two weeks of the season has been involved, right?
Even if he hasn't been a guy who's been getting specific targets.
He had a couple of targets, had a couple of catches against the Jaguars on Sunday.
even drew a very crucial pass interference call against Travis Hunter.
But coming into this game here specifically against the Rams,
this is one of those games where I think we need to see Cortland Sutton,
Jalen Waddle, the, I mean, I don't want to say Batman and Robin,
because anytime you refer to someone as Robin, it's usually viewed as a negative slight.
So I'm trying to think it's like the cereal and the milk to make it work.
That's what the Broncos offense has to do this week.
And Cortland, this could be a big game against a guy like Trent McDuffie,
who he has sunned in the last couple of seasons.
He definitely has.
And Cody,
I'm glad you brought up the pass interference that Cortland drew in this game
because I had forgotten about that until you mentioned that.
It's a great point because,
you know,
otherwise the numbers look rough,
right?
And they,
even with that play considered,
I know it's just two games,
but even with that play considered,
just listen to some of these numbers,
okay?
Cortland has been targeted nine times.
He has five catches for 36 yards.
on nine targets, Cortland has one first down catch.
Now, you can add a second in there for the pass interference penalty that he drew.
But he has as many first downs right now, catching actually catching the ball for a first
down as he does drops, which is one.
And his passer rating when targeted, the passer rating for Bow Nicks when targeting
Cortland this season is 25.5.
Now, I don't remember the exact number, but I do believe that 39 point something is what a
quarterback rating would be if you spike the ball in the dirt pretty much every time you snap it
to the quarterback throughout the course of a game. The reason why the passer rating towards Cortland
Sutton's direction is so low is because Bo has thrown two interceptions this season,
both when targeting Cortland Sutton. So there's a clear disconnect and it's kind of similar to
after week one, when Jalen Waddle had one catch for two yards on three targets, we're sitting there thinking
like, man, when they start force-feeding him the ball, it's going to be good.
Now, maybe not necessarily exactly the same with Cortland Sutton, but what goes up must come down,
right?
So what goes down must come back up eventually, right?
The pendulum's going to swing for Cortland Sutton.
Why not this game against the L.A. Rams, right?
Not at the expense, like you mentioned, of Jalen Waddle, but certainly you feel like at some point
he's going to break out of this slump, and it might as well be in week three.
and I guarantee you when the Broncos watch back the film and they see Cortland Sutton and they look at his stats and they're saying one first down, one drop, two interceptions, 25.5 pass rating at Cortland Sutton's, you know, when he's targeted, that ain't going to stand for Sean Payton.
They're going to scheme up some ways for number 14 to get the ball.
And is part of the problem here, the fact that, you know, on third down, key passing situations, there are too many Cortland Sutton tendencies.
Not a bad thing, right, but just teams know, like you go back to week one.
that interception against the chiefs.
I think that was great film study knowing that, hey, in third and long,
Cortland Sutton, they love to run him on the dagger route, right?
Especially if he's the solo guy, he gets the outside release.
They know they like that deep endbreaker.
And they like it, especially when there's another, like the strength is to the opposite side
where on that play specifically, Marvin is running the corner and the safety off.
The robber kind of stays in lurks, but Monsour Delane, because a film study noticed,
hey, third and long, we know the dig is coming.
And so we almost kind of ran Cortland Sutton's route for him.
Now also, I don't know if you caught this, going back and rewatching the actual telecast,
I believe one of the announcers during the game on Bo Nix's interception on the past intended
Cortland, I think they said something along the lines of, hey, Cortland Sutton's lined up in the slot.
They usually like to go down here.
And sure enough, it's like if the announcers are seeing it, you know the defensive
coordinators are.
So do the Broncos have to find a way to bust some of these tendencies?
I think so.
but I also think part of the problem is,
teams are looking at Cortland,
even with the addition to Jaylon Waddle,
and they're saying, you know what,
on third down,
that's Boone Knicks' favorite guy to go to.
That's been the case in Bo's first two seasons.
Third down,
it's Boat of Cortland.
That's the connection that thrives on third and fourth down.
And they're saying,
we're going to be willing to live with somebody else beating us.
And now that Jaylen Waddle is eating,
I'm curious to see how defense has shifted.
Because now, if defenses are now more concerned about Jalen,
based on what we saw against Jacksonville,
I do think we are going to see more opportunity.
for Cortland. But I think that was a risk that defenses Kansas City and Jacksonville in the first
two weeks we're willing to live with by saying we're going on so we're going to cover Sutton.
We're going to focus on him primarily on third down. And if somebody else beats us, we'll live with it.
And that somebody did Jalen Waddle to your point, Cody. And I think that's what we talked about all
offseason with this Jalen Waddle edition is we believe that Cortland could reach even greater heights that he
has not yet reached at the NFL level, even though he's, what, 30, 31 years old, whatever it is this
season, I mean, when you have somebody like Waddle who is making the place on 10 targets,
you catch 8 passes for 138 yards, you're averaging over 17 yards of catch.
Well, the Broncos can just keep right on going back to that guy every single time he's
out there running a route because he's running wide open.
So until you prove that you're going to adjust and try to stop him, they can keep going there.
but then when defenses do show that tendency that, hey, we need to double cover Jalen Waddle.
We need to bracket cover Jalen Waddle.
Well, then guess what?
Number 14 is going to start getting those one-on-one opportunities again.
And yes, those tendencies are there.
There's two years now, two full seasons of Cortland Sutton being Bo Nix's favorite target.
And we even touched on it last season.
There were stretches where Cortland would disappear.
And we're just kind of like, hey, your hands are sort of tied because he's that guy.
And he still would come through and make big plays.
So yes, you need other guys to make plays now.
But when Cortland starts getting freed up, that I think is going.
And I think he's going to start hearing stuff too, Cody,
because this contract situation that we haven't got to touch on much,
I feel like he's going to start hearing stuff about, man,
the effort on those two interceptions and the contract situation is this is last year in Denver.
And for those who don't know,
the Broncos took his pro-rated bonuses on his contract.
and basically just paid them this year.
So because they had the cap space.
So his cap number increased by, I believe, 9.4 million or something like that.
So that's what that is.
But it's basically taking off those pro-rated bonuses in the future,
making people wonder, is this his last year?
So I think he's going to respond to all that, Cody,
and I think he's going to have a big game.
I'd be watching number 14 on Sunday night.
Yeah, he's going to be an X-Factor player to watch here in Broncos Country.
That'll wrap up today's episode of the show.
We appreciate you so much for a brand-new viewer listener.
and hit that subscriber follow button because Sarah and I,
we got you covered every single day all year long
with all the Broncos coverage and content that you need specifically.
And tomorrow's episode of the show,
Sarah and I are going to focus on some of the things
that we learned from the Monday night football matchup
between the Los Angeles Rams and their opponent, the Giants.
What do the Giants do against the Rams specifically?
How can the Broncos take a page out of things that work?
And what do the Broncos have to watch out for?
You'll get all that and more on tomorrow's episode, Lockdown Broncos.
