The Broncos have now finished the first half of their season with a 5-3 record. The next two games will be on the road vs Baltimore and KC. This will determine where this team is and whether or not we can consider them a viable playoff team. The game vs Baltimore next week seemed daunting just a few weeks ago, but after what transpired this weekend, I think Denver has a real shot to go in there and pull off the upset. Here's why:
Bo Nix continues to improve, and Baltimore's defense against the pass is not as good as in previous seasons. The Ravens are ranked dead last against the pass as they give up 291.4 yards per game, and they just gave up 334 yards and 3TDs. With the way Nix just played vs. the Panthers, dealing for 3 TDS of his own at nearly 300 yards, he's only getting more confident, and the numbers suggest that he can have a similar type of success vs. Baltimore.
Against Carolina, Nix's performance was nice to see, but it wasn't needed because the Panthers' offense is horrid. Against the Ravens, that performance is going to be a necessity rather than just a luxury because we know that Lamar Jackson is going to make plays on the other side regardless of how good our defense is that day.
This game will be on the shoulders of Bo Nix because the Ravens' run defense is ranked number as they allow 69.9, and Denver isn't a dynamic run team to begin with anyway. They must find a way to exploit that suspect pass-defense, and if they can do similar things to what they did to Carolina, they have a shot. However, there are two things that I want to see cleaned ASAP. The fumbles and the drops. Both were on display yesterday, but since it was Carolina, the mistakes didn't cost us. If Denver fumbles twice vs Baltimore, it is going to be a long day. As for the drops, they have become a common theme, especially on the deep balls, and to beat a team like the Ravens, we can't leave points off the board, we must take advantage of every little sliver of all the opportunities we get.
This next game is by far our biggest game of the season. If they pull this off, it's time to look at the Broncos as real contenders in the AFC!
sources: https://www.espn.com/nfl/stats/team/_/view/defense/table/rushing/sort/rushingYardsPerGame/dir/asc
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