Ultimate Fan: Time for Denver to dial up an aggressive offense

It seems like a long time ago we were reading a UFG and watching the Broncos (because 10 days is an eternity in an NFL season!) but we are back and ready to see this team kick it into another gear after some time off and a slightly easier opponent.

Kingbronco58 is back to show us how the Broncos’ offense can take charge for four quarters (looking at you, Payton), what Nix needs to do, and how the defense can continue to make life miserable for opponents.

Kingbronco58 is one of our younger fans (who I met at a Broncos Raiders game years ago!) who joined the flock in the McDaniels era, which I always have to point out because it’s a little amazing he stuck around!

But I’m so glad he did, and his Broncos Mount Rushmore is a testament to his fandom (now if he’ll just go watch those old Elway games too!!)

Week 7: Broncos at Cardinals

MHR – It’s been a while since the OT win over the Seahawks. Quick thoughts on that second-half collapse, but OT save for the W?
Kingbronco58: I think the second half collapse just speaks to the second half adjustments made by Mike McDonald and a talented Seahawks defense. With the way the game started, I thought we were finally about to see the offense put together a complete game. Hopefully this week, we finally get to see it come together. But at the end of the day we escaped a gauntlet of six games with a 4-2 record, and I think most would have been happy with 3-3 before the season.

MHR – Ironically, this question was from last year’s Week 7 game… but it’s sadly appropriate again this season! The “offense struggles, defense saves the day” is a common theme. How frustrating is it that by Week 7 Bo Nix and the offense are still (and once again) mostly relying on the defense to “get” the win? Or should we be cool with having such a strong defense?
Kingbronco58:  It’s definitely frustrating that we are seeing it again, especially when we added Waddle in the offseason thinking he’d help the offense take the next step. I personally think this is still largely tied to Bo not mentally over the hurdle of his playoff injury. Theres been a ton of chatter on Twitter about how the Broncos need to move on from Bo after two years of slow starts. We’ve seen Bo go toe to toe with some of the best QBs in the league after starting slow. I’d rather see him peak in the playoffs when it matters than disappear when it matters. Having a strong defense that can carry when the offense is finding its footing is a luxury many teams would love to have, so I don’t see any reason that wouldn’t be cool.

MHR –  The Broncos offense also falls into a familiar pattern –  very few yards on 1st and 2nd down, creating 3rd and long which always brings a lot of pressure and usually leads to a three-an-out. In general terms, what is holding this team back? Or is it just playing really good defenses?
Kingbronco58: I feel like the offense struggling has been for a variety of reasons. We generally do a poor job challenging the middle of the field on the passing game. Wide receivers drop too many balls. No one consistently gets open. Dobbins has looked awful to start the season and the run game has been inefficient. And our play calling lacks creativity. Do all of these need to be fixed before the offense gets back on track? I don’t think so. But we need to see improvements in a lot of areas, playing really good defenses obviously doesn’t help when we are already struggling. But for the second year in a row we see the offense show up in plenty of games in the second half.

MHR – Will we ever see the Jaylen Waddle we were promised?
Kingbronco58: I really hope so, I can’t tell where the disconnect is with Waddle. But having traded a first round pick for him, his performance thus far is disappointing as fan and as a fantasy football owner.

MHR – Bo Nix has acknowledged he needs to play better, and Sean Payton has taken some responsibility for the offensive struggles. Are you concerned about Nix’s performance overall? Any worry about the long-term projection for Nix as the franchise QB?  
Kingbronco58: I’m a little concerned, but we saw this last year as well. I feel like he’s playing not to lose instead playing to win while also struggling to overcome the mental aspects of his injury. He still has shown some flashes, like the Jacksonville game, and even the second half of the Rams game. I’m not rushing to make any decisions on Nix as the franchise QB yet. The reality is we are just now in year 3. We have the 5th year option and a franchise tag before we are absolutely locked into Nix as the franchise guy. A year ago Texans fans were having the same conversation, asking if Stroud was done after having a down year. And Stroud has really bounced back this year, so lets not rush into trying to draft another QB because Nix has struggled so far this year. For what its worth, I still Bo-lieve.

MHR – The Cardinals’ defense has struggled overall, but Budda Baker remains one of the league’s most versatile defensive backs, recording 42 tackles, 3.5 sacks and an interception this season. If he ends up playing, how concerned are you that Baker will be a big disrupter for an already inconsistent offense? And even if he’s out, how do you think the offense will handle Arizona’s tendency to disguise its defensive looks?
Kingbronco58: I guess to an extent I’m not that worried about a specific guy or disguised defenses. I’m sure this response will come back to bite me. The Broncos have already played some really good defenses, including teams that have coordinators that like to disguise defensive looks. I think this is the easiest matchup of the season so far; if the offense struggles again I don’t think they deserve any excuses.

MHR – The Broncos’ running game has struggled to establish much consistency, but Arizona has been one of the league’s worst teams defending the run. Is this finally the week Denver gets its ground game going? And which running back do you think should and could carry the load? If Jonah Coleman is back, does that change anything?
Kingbronco58: I don’t think the run game gets going this week unless the Broncos have a big lead. The O-line hasn’t been consistent opening up holes in the run game this season. I want to see Harvey get more carries. We all know that he’s extremely good in the passing game, but not getting him carries telegraphs what the offense is going to do. I think Dobbins carries the load again this week, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Coleman becomes the guy as we get later into the season. I expect Coleman to play this week but after a month off, I don’t see a drastic improvement in the run game as he will be eased into playing time.

MHR – This is game three with Sean Payton calling plays. Do you think the switch was a good choice? How would you grade his play-calling the last two games? What would you like to see improved and what specifically do you think should be Payton’s emphasis this week when it comes to passing plays, run/pass balance, creativity, etc.?
Kingbronco58: I think the switch happened too early. The stats say that Davis Webb’s offense looked just slightly better than what we’ve seen from Payton. That said, I think Payton has done a better job staying balanced and sticking to an inefficient run game than Webb had. I would give Payton a C in play calling after his first two games. It feels like he still gets overly conservative at times.

I’d like to see us do two things better. One, I want to see us attack the middle of the field more. Looking at Bo’s passing charts everything is to the outside, but Bo is very good passing to the middle of the field. He just doesn’t do it often for some reason, I’d like to see that change. Two, I want to see more schemed targets for both Sutton and Waddle. Both our WRs are off to slow starts this season, so let’s get them touches early and get them involved in the game. This week I want to see Payton go for the jugular. I don’t really care if that means Bo throws 55 times or we run the ball a ton. But I’m tired of getting the lead and just trying to milk the clock away like we kind of did against the Seahawks.

MHR – Jonathon Cooper will be back this Sunday. Will his presence make a big difference? How do you think Que Robinson and Jonah Elliss have done in his place the last six games? What will it do for Nik Bonitto? 
Kingbronco58: I think his presence will make an impact. He’s a better run defender than Que and still a good pass rusher. We’ve seen this defense struggle a bit with the run, so having Cooper set the edge is hopefully helpful. I think Que and Jonah have both shown flashes stepping in for Cooper. Que especially has shown some terrific pass rush ability. I think this opens up the opportunity for Bonitto to be the sack artist we saw last year as there is a more respected threat on the other side. The bigger advantage in my opinion is it helps the whole pass rush stay fresher by having another option in the rotation.

MHR – Trey McBride is arguably Arizona’s biggest offensive weapon, leading the NFL with 49 receptions through six games. Denver’s defense has generally done a good job limiting opponents’ top receiving threats, but not always so good with the TEs. How would you approach defending him, and how much does Patrick Surtain II’s potential availability change that strategy?
Kingbronco58: TEs always feel like they are the bane of Vance Joseph’s defenses, I don’t expect that to change this week (*editor’s note: bonus points for using “bane” in a sentence!) McBride is an extremely talented TE and practically the only weapon that the Cardinals have. I expect him to get his targets and have a solid to good game. I would always double team him, though. Make someone else on the team beat us. I don’t think Surtain plays this week, but if he did I don’t think it would change the strategy of containing McBride significantly.

MHR – Ja’Quan McMillian is having an outstanding year. What do you like best about his game and do you think Vance Joseph should use him more?
Kingbronco58: Ja’Quan McMillian reminds me a lot of Chris Harris. There is nearly nothing McMillian cannot do from the slot. He’s a very timely blitzer, and does a great job covering the player he’s across from. He also is willing to take chances to go for the turnover. I think Vance would be dumb to not use him as much as he can because he’s such a versatile player.

MHR – Arizona is just 2-4, but the Cardinals are coming off an impressive 18-16 upset of the Rams. What concerns you most about this Cardinals team, and what did they show against LA that should have Denver fans paying attention?
Kingbronco58: They won that game kicking six field goals, and nearly lost it at the very end. I think divisional matchups can always get a little weird given how familiar the two teams are. I think what was most impressive about their game against LA was how they moved the ball even if they struggled to punch it into the end zone. The offense was consistently driving and having a chance to put points on the board. McBride is my biggest concern about the Cardinals, but I covered how to handle him!

MHR – Denver’s defense continues to be the backbone of this team, and Zach Allen is its main support. Going against his former team, how big of a factor do you expect Allen to be in the pass rush specifically and the potential defensive domination generally?
Kingbronco58: I’m here for a revenge game narrative, so I’d love to see Zach Allen pop off against his former team. He has been one of the Broncos’ best free agent signings in recent memory. Allen has been so dominant the last few years that it really opens up opportunities for his teammates. We saw this last week against Seattle where he had three offensive linemen focused on blocking him. Allen will get some pressures, but expect his teammates to be the main beneficiaries. And I think Allen’s pressures will force Brissett into at least one turnover in this game.

MHR – Payton assured fans the Broncos would not overlook the Cardinals as the rematch with the Chiefs is looming. What would show you in this upcoming game that the Broncos are better suited to take on the Chiefs next week than in their first meeting Week 1? What would concern you?
Kingbronco58: Better tackling. Week 1 was a disaster, not only because the offense stunk but because the defense had one of the worst tackling performances in NFL history. The other thing that I’d like to see is the offense to start finding its groove. The Chiefs defense is way more talented than the Cardinals. If we can’t run up the score on the Cardinals, then next week’s best case scenario is a defensive slugfest.

Predictions

Stats for BO NIX?   19/27, 274yds, 2 TDs

Stats for each Broncos RB?  Dobbins 14 carries 53 yds, Harvey 5 carries 24 yds, Coleman 6 carries 32 yds 1 TD

Number of yards receiving/TDs for the receivers? Waddle 5 catches, 73 yds 1 TD; Sutton 3 catches, 43 yds, 1 TD

Longest FG from Lutz this week?  47 yds

Number of sacks to Jacoby Brissett?  4

Broncos player with the most tackles?  Singleton

Who gets the first sack of the game for the Broncos?  Bonitto

Who gets the most sacks?   Bonitto

How many INTs/FF/FR for the Cardinals D?   0/0/0

How many INTs/FF/FR for the Broncos D?   1/1/0

How many penalties between the two teams?  14

How many failed screen passes will the Broncos have that will make docllv CRAZY? 3

Final Score?   I’m going to this game, and this will be 5th time watching the Broncos on the road. I’m 0-4… but of course I’m going to predict that I get to witness my first road win this Sunday! Broncos 24 – 10

The Favorites 

Favorite Broncos win ever?  SB50

Favorite Peyton Manning win?   San Diego Chargers comeback his first year here. I think we were down 24-0 or so at half.

Favorite John Elway win (at least that you’ve heard about!)?   Every time I do a UFG I have to admit I still haven’t gotten around to watching any of the Elway era haha. But I’ll go with SB33 going back to back; riding off into the sunset must have been special. (*editor’s note: you HAVE to go back and watch those!)

Favorite win by any other Broncos QB?  I have 2. Bo’s comeback last year against the Giants. And the Tebow OT playoff win against the Steelers.

Team you love to beat the most in the AFC West?  Chiefs

Coach you despise most in the NFL? Nick Sirriani

Team you hate to lose to the most in the rest of the AFC (outside AFC West)? Patriots

NFC team you could cheer for in the Super Bowl?  Rams

NFC team you’d want to face more than any other in the Super Bowl? Bears

Toughest game remaining on the schedule?  Bills or Chiefs

Favorite Broncos player on the current roster?  Surtain

Favorite Broncos player of all time?   Von Miller

Food/Snack you have to eat on game day?  Wings

Favorite game analyst/commentator?   Mike Tarico. It’s a shame his partner is Collinsworth

Who is on your Broncos Mt. Rushmore?  Von Miller, Peyton Manning, Elway, Demaryius Thomas, Champ Bailey

Give me one word/phrase/cliche to describe your hope for this season?  Super Bowl or bust (*editor’s note: That’s a bold strategy, Cotton!)

How did you become a Broncos fan?
No one in my family watches sports, but growing up in Denver it kind of naturally happened. The first Broncos game I ever watched was the Broncos’ loss to the Steelers in the 2005 AFC conference championship. But I didn’t get hooked into football until a few years after that. I started watching closely and learning the game of football and cheering for the Broncos the season they hired McDaniels. I haven’t missed a Broncos game since.