We here at Raiders Wire can give you the perspective of the Raiders next opponent from the outside looking in. But that isn’t enough. For the inside track on the Broncos, we spoke with ‘The’ Jon Heath from USA Today’s Broncos Wire to give us the view from the inside.
Q; Are you a Boliever? Maybe just in flashes? Or is it Stiddy time?
Jon Heath: It’s definitely not Stiddy time. The Broncos used a high first-round pick on Bo Nix, so they’re going to let it play out. Sean Payton will let Nix play through his rookie growing pains, something Peyton Manning has recommended. I Bolieve to the extent that I think Nix will be a competent quarterback in the NFL. Whether or not that’s good enough to compete in the AFC West remains to be seen. After two tough games, he really bounced back in Week 3, then the Broncos had unique circumstances with a crazy rain storm in Week 4. Nix’s progress has been slow, but there has been progress. We’ll see if it continues.
Q: From the outside, it looks like the Broncos pass rush is the reason their defense has been so good. Is that simplifying it too much? Is there more to it than that? What’s the engine that makes it go?
JH: That’s certainly part of it, but the pass rush has also benefited from Denver’s brilliant secondary. Vance Joseph loves to blitz and he can do so in part because Pat Surtain, Riley Moss and Ja’Quan McMillian have been holding up well in man coverage. Jonathon Cooper, Nik Bonitto and Zach Allen are talented pass rushers (and Jonah Elliss is a promising rookie), but the scheme has helped them get home. It’s an impressive mix of tight coverage, timely blitzes and talented rushers.
JH: On offense, it was RB Tyler Badie before he suffered a scary back injury. Now I’ll say TE/FB Nate Adkins. He does not play a flashy position, but he delivers key blocks for Denver’s running backs and he can also make plays in the passing game. On defense, Zach Allen is still underrated nationally, but he won’t be for long. I’d guess most Raiders fans aren’t familiar with slot cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian, who is a rising star at the position.
JH: Defending the run, but they did much better in that regard last week. Cody Barton is a journeyman inside linebacker and Justin Strnad is a former special teams player who became a starter after Alex Singleton’s season-ending ACL injury. They would be, in theory, the weak links on defense, but they’ve been holding up. The Broncos’ defense ranks second in total yards allowed, third in passing yards allowed, third in points allowed but “only” 12th in rushing yards allowed. Perhaps not a huge weakness, but Denver defends the pass better than the run.
JH: The Raiders are in the middle of some drama right now and players can probably tune that out on game day, but the Broncos are playing at home after a two-game road trip and they will be wearing their beautiful throwback uniforms, and they’re eager to snap an eight-game losing streak to their division rival. I’m a believer in sports psychology and I think Denver has the edge mentally this week. Broncos 20, Raiders 17.
