The Broncos are Overhyped.

by Wyatt W

The Denver Broncos are on pace for their most wins since 2013, And are tied with the New England Patriots  for the best record In the NFL (National Football league).Under this renewed enthusiasm for our local football club is a cracking facade of narrow wins, bad opponents and an overhyped quarterback.

Many of the Broncos opponents have not played good opponents through week 14. In fact, they have only played 3 teams that currently hold a winning record. Their record against them this year is 1-2, and with their narrow victory over the now 2-11 Las Vegas Raiders , the teams they have played this year hold a combined record of 30-49-1. Their future opponents hold a current combined record of 32-17-1.

Now, while winning 84% of your games through week 14 is an impressive feat. When you beat a 3-10 Commanders team in overtime by one in December, it is still a win but come time for the playoffs. Just barely beating terrible teams isn't going to cut it. When you play the Buffalo Bills  or the Baltimore Ravens, they have way more playoff experience than you. You're going to get smacked. Dont let your bias get the best of you because It's a simple calculus. This team is not yet ready for a playoff run.

 An article written by The Athletic claimed: ¨The Broncos have a strong record, but some of those wins may be fools gold. Their first-half opponents owned a combined 23-48-1 record, and yet, the Broncos average margin of victory is just 6.2 points. Four of those contests were decided by 3 points or fewer.¨

Now the Broncos have had 14 quarterbacks have started at least 1 game for the Broncos since Peyton Manning retired after their 2015 Super Bowl win and, ever since then, it seems as if the Broncos have been trying to find his replacement. With 14 quarterbacks since 2015, only 3 have a winning record and only one has played every game of the season, that being Bo Nix. While many Broncos fans believe that they have found their next franchise quarterback, many signs indicate the opposite. 

Bo Nix's struggles have been more than evident this season:¨The Broncos have consistently sputtered on offense. They have the second-highest percentage of drives that end in three-and-outs in the NFL (28.9%), and Nix's inconsistent play is a factor there. He ranks 27th in the NFL in completion percentage (61.2%), four points lower than where he stood through 11 games as a rookie. He is 28th out of 34 QBs in NFL Next Gen Stats' completion percentage over expectation (CPOE) at minus-3.2%,¨ writes Jeff Legwold on ESPN .

Moreover, Bo Nix is top 10 in interceptions thrown and is in the bottom half in quarterback ratings, being at 18. This is calculated by evaluating the expected points added (EPA) for each play, including passes, rushes, and sacks, and then adjusting for play difficulty and situational context like downward and distance. This puts him in the bottom third of quarterbacks, according to ESPN .

Now there is no doubt that the Broncos are where they are due to their defense being on pace for record-setting numbers in sacks and very few points allowed. It is obvious they have a Super Bowl caliber defense, but their offense, without a doubt, lacks behind other teams in the league. They only have two players ranked in the top 100 in receiving yards, which are Courtland Sutton and Troy Franklin.

Now there are many ways this team could be a Super Bowl contender within the next 5 years. Even now, I'm not going to go out here and say get rid of Bo Nix because he's a fan favorite and a first-round draft pick. 

Now what the Broncos should do is get him some weapons in the form of a better wide receiver room. Now I would keep Courtland Sutton, but besides him, completely getting that wide receiver room now, by the end of this year, I would recommend resigning John Franklin Meyers while also trying to acquire Alec Pierce in free agency. He averages 20.9 yards per catch and I would highly recommend signing a veteran wide receiver to help the young team. I would choose either Mike Evans, Keenan Allen, DeAndre Hopkins, and Amari Cooper.