Fourteen NFL teams have advanced to the playoffs. While postseason teams are the cream of the crop, none of them are perfect. That is especially true this season because there are a number of new and unheralded teams without much postseason experience in the field. The Denver Broncos are one such team. Last year was Denver's first postseason appearance since they won Super Bowl 50. The Broncos were able to secure the No. 1 seed and, therefore, a first-round bye this year. The team has looked great, but there are some flaws that could prevent a Super Bowl run.
Broncos' struggles with offensive stagnation could cost them
The Broncos' defense is arguably the best in the NFL, and there are no concerns about the team's ability to play at a championship level on that side of the field. Most notably, Denver thrives getting after the quarterback. Their 68 sacks were not only the most in the NFL, but the team came close to breaking the single-season sack record.
Nik Bonitto, Zach Allen, and Jonathan Cooper are all elite at rushing the passer, and the front seven has plenty of depth that impacts the passing game, too. These rushers make life easy on an also elite secondary. Pat Surtain II is the reigning Defensive Player of the Year. His presence makes teams target Riley Moss a lot, but they struggle to convert on the cornerback, especially since he has cleaned up some pass interference issues as of late. Jahdae Barron and Ja'Quan McMillian are really good players, too. At safety, Talanoa Hufanga is a magnet who is always around the ball, and Brandon Jones may return from injured reserve at some point. Even the run game holds things down with D.J. Jones plugging up the interior and Dre Greenlaw and Alex Singleton racking up tackles from the off-ball linebacker spots.
The Broncos finished the regular season third in points against (18.3) and second in yards allowed (278.2). The offense had its moments, but far too often, the team struggled to put points on the board. The flashes were great, with Denver's games against the Green Bay Packers, Dallas Cowboys, and New York Giants standing out as offensive explosions. Bo Nix has had quite an impressive first two seasons. He doesn't take sacks, and his game went to the next level when he started connecting with his receivers on more deep balls.
Nix plays behind one of the best offensive lines in the NFL, and he has plenty of weapons to give the ball to. RJ Harvey has impressed in his rookie season at running back, and tight end Evan Engram led all pass catchers in separation distance this year. At receiver, Courtland Sutton has a knack for making big plays, Marvin Mims is a speed threat and gadget option, and Troy Franklin is a great route runner.
Despite this talent, the Broncos had four wins in which they scored under 20 points. They also relied on fourth-quarter comebacks on a nearly weekly basis. While the team's ability to win in the clutch should be admired, it might not be a sustainable method of victory in the playoffs against the best teams in the league.
When Denver doesn't produce on offense, a number of factors can be blamed. At times, the Broncos' play-calling has been too conservative. The opposite can be true, too, as Sean Payton has gone the route of trickeration in times when a routine play call may have done the trick.
Furthermore, while the Broncos have a lot of good offensive players, they don't have a true great playmaker. Sutton goes ghost mode for entire halves at a time on occasion, and Engram hasn't fulfilled his promise as the team's Joker as well as hoped. The team also struggles to score the ball during their first drive of the game, which is a time when a lot of teams have a script that results in early points. The Broncos' inability to gain momentum early is part of the reason they are so reliant on winning at the end of games.
Can Broncos fix their biggest fatal flaw?
Despite their glaring weakness, the Broncos' Super Bowl odds are not doomed. Considering their first-round bye, the Broncos only need to string together three impressive offensive performances, which this team is certainly capable of doing. Despite his sometimes conservative play-calling, Payton is still an offensive mastermind. He has even won a Super Bowl before.
Payton should be able to get the best out of Nix, who has been one of the most-winningest quarterbacks through his first two seasons ever. Nix is a gamer, and he should turn things up in the postseason. J.K. Dobbins could return by the AFC Championship, too, which would really open up the rushing attack.
Even if the offense is just okay, as long as the defense remains elite and the offense continues to excel in crunch time, the Broncos should be just fine. They'd have to win one fewer game than any other team in the AFC to hoist the Lombardi Trophy, and they should be considered the favorites from the conference to get to the Super Bowl.
