Beating the 1-7 Carolina Panthers at home was expected. Upsetting the 5-3 Baltimore Ravens on the road is a much tougher task.
The Denver Broncos (5-3) are set to travel to Baltimore this week for what coach Sean Payton described as the team’s toughest challenge of the season so far.
“Certainly, this will be our toughest challenge to date by far,” Payton said Wednesday. “This is a real, real good football team. Getting back to last week, we’re not going to be able to afford a few of those errors against a good team like this.”
This matchup will have big playoff implications for both the Broncos and Ravens in the AFC. After Wednesday’s practice, quarterback Bo Nix was asked if Denver will use the game as a measuring stick.
“No, I don’t think so,” Nix said. “It’s just one of those games that is going to be really important for the outcome of both of our seasons. We know it’s important for us and obviously it’s going to be really important for them. I think in saying that, the game is ultimately pretty big and it has a lot going into it.”
Nix and Co. are prepared to face a Baltimore squad that lives up to the AFC North legacy of being a tough, physical team.
“[T]hese guys have been that [way] for a long time,” Nix said. “They have notoriously been physical. Guys that have come before have set the tone for who they are as a defense. We know it’s going to be a physical football game. We know that they’re going to be really ready to play. They’ve kind of hit their stride and we just have to be good in all phases of the game.
“… We have to match the intensity, the passion [and] the physicality that they’re going to play with. I’m excited for the challenge because these are the type of games that you go through, you play and they’re extremely difficult. They’re hard at the moment, but when you get out of them, you grow a lot as a player. You learn a lot about yourself and about your team. Ultimately going on the road, competing and winning a game like this is special for an organization, too. It’s not going to be easy, but we’re going to be ready.”
Sunday’s game will be regionally televised on CBS (TV broadcast map). Playing on the road, Denver is considered a big underdog in Week 9.
