Sunday featured one of the most heart-wrenching losses in recent memory for the Denver Broncos, when you consider the expectations and stakes of the season, the outside perception of the two teams playing, and the overall nature of the defeat.
With that in mind, it’s the perfect time to bring back the Denver Broncos Stock Report to help us sift through all the muck for some nuggets of gold together. Who shined and who stunk on Sunday? Let’s look.
Editor’s Note: My sincere apologies for the lack of content on this website as of late. Starting now, we will have weekly stock reports available on the site, as well as a selection of other excellent articles from our amazing staff, including two excellent deep dives from Liam Hammer coming later this week. I’ve been busy with my other work, but I am ready to get the site rolling again now. Thank you for being so patient, and now, let’s talk some Broncos.
Stock Up
J.K. Dobbins and Denver’s OL
R.J. Harvey deserves praise for his Week 1 performance, but with this article focusing solely on Week 2, the spotlight has to be pointed solely at J.K. Dobbins and his impressive bounce-back showing.
In Week 1, Dobbins lumbered through the Broncos’ backfield, and although he picked up some modest gains, it seemed clear he was a lower-wattage option that needed to start trending towards a secondary role in the backfield, with Harvey looking like the much more dynamic weapon.
Against the Colts though, Dobbins looked rejuvenated. He popped multiple explosive carries, hit the right creases, and ran over Indy defenders on his way to notching a 5.4 yards per carry average.
Maintaining that level of play will be a question, considering how many miles Dobbins has on those knees, but one should feel optimistic that the run game will remain solid even if he exits the lineup, considering how well the line played this week.
The Week 1 run-blocking was unimpressive, but against a Titans front built to stop the run, with five players north of 280 pounds, and a meager number of opportunities to get into a rhythm, it’s unsurprising the unit got off to a slower start. However, this week, the Broncos’ backs averaged 1.81 yards before contact per attempt, the eighth-best average for Week 2.
As an added bonus for the line, Nix wasn’t sacked once and was only pressured three times all game, with the protection only being responsible for two of those pressures.
Troy Franklin
It’s time to throw all your Troy Franklin qualifiers away.
First, it was ‘well, it’s just training camp,’ then it was ‘preseason games lie all the time,’ and finally it was ‘just one game against a bad team’.
Now, we’ve seen enough. Franklin may come back to earth some, but he’s deserving of being the Broncos’ clear-cut No. 2 option in the passing game — over early-summer frontrunners Evan Engram, Marvin Mims, and even Devaughn Vele.
Even as a rookie, Franklin was excellent at creating separation, and he’s even better now that he’s added more muscle to his frame. His speed is a weapon that can stretch defenses horizontally or torch them over the top for an explosive play. His chemistry with Bo Nix has also been evident this year, after they struggled to be on the same page in 2024.
The surprising development is how he’s become a hyper-reliable catcher of the football, hauling in 12 of his 15 targets this season, good for a rate of 80%, which is seventh-best among wide receivers with at least 10 targets this season. Franklin is also one of six wide receivers with a 100% contested catch rate and multiple contested catch opportunities this season.
As a result, Franklin has been the Broncos’ most productive and most targeted weapon through two weeks, which has allowed the rest of Denver’s arsenal to slot into more natural roles.
Bo Nix
Bo Nix wasn’t perfect on Sunday. There was some meat left on the bone, and the interception was costly, even if the deflection muddies the water on whose blame it was.
Still though, after a Week 1 showing that carved a pit in the stomach of every Broncos fan watching, it was relieving to see a composed performance that spearheaded an efficient and productive passing attack.
Nix opened the game by napalming the Colts’ defense for three touchdown drives on the team’s first four possessions, to the tune of a 12-for-15 for 115 yards and three incompletions. Plus, while the offense wasn’t some adrenaline-filled display of daredevil quarterbacking, it also wasn’t the screen-a-palooza that inflated Nix’s stats against the Falcons last year.
Even though he came back down to earth some after that dizzying start, Nix finished the day with the NFL’s sixth-best EPA/dropback, trailing only Drake Maye, Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, Jared Goff, and, shockingly, Russell Wilson in Week 2. If he’s able to produce anywhere near that level consistently, the Broncos should have no problem winning 10-plus games.
Rookies Jahdae Barron and Pat Bryant
Jahdae Barron and Pat Bryant didn’t fill up the stat sheet in their road debuts, but both have earned contributing roles on their sides of the ball and both made a positive impact Sunday.
Barron came away with the first pass breakup of his career on his lone target of the day. On his 24 coverage snaps so far this season, he’s been targeted three times and has yet to allow a completion.
Bryant converted a 2nd and 9 on his first target of the day, and then lowered his shoulder at the line-to-gain to convert an important 3rd and 6 opportunity.
It’s fair to want more out of the rookie class and to feel disappointed in the lack of production, but that doesn’t change the fact that we’ve seen Barron, Harvey, and Bryant all perform well when their number has been called.
Stock Down
Every Facet of the Denver Broncos Defense
In the aftermath of the loss to the Indianapolis Colts, the Denver Broncos’ linebackers have caught the lion’s share of the criticism. The need for an upgrade on Alex Singleton has been covered plenty on this site, and that does deserve serious attention this week, but don’t let that distract from the defense’s numerous other disappointments.
A pass rush that the team has invested mountains of cash into failed to sack Daniel Jones more than once. Plus, even that lone sack was the product of an unblocked pressure from Justin Strnad, as opposed to an impressive pass-rush win from Nik Bonitto, Zach Allen, or some other member of the prestigious defensive front.
That same front was bullied mercilessly in the ground game. Jonathan Taylor totaled 165 yards on the ground on just 25 carries — a devastating 6.6 yards per carry.
The aforementioned linebacker woes showed up there plenty, as Alex Singleton was left looking like a lumbering giant chasing after a mischievous woodland sprite whenever he was isolated against either Taylor or rookie tight end Tyler Warren. Denver’s poor linebacker play allowed the Indianapolis offense to pick on those coverage matchups all game long, which bailed them out of many offensive jams.
Finally, the Broncos’ heralded secondary was diced apart like we haven’t seen since 70-20, as ‘Danny Dimes’ effortlessly marched the Colts’ attack up and down the field. Pat Surtain II turned in arguably the worst performance of his career (seven receptions allowed for 63 yards and five first-down conversions), and Riley Moss and Ja’Quan McMillian didn’t provide much help (allowed a combined 8-for-10 for 98 yards, five first-down conversions, and one touchdown).
At the end of the day, the Denver Broncos’ defense failed to force a single punt or turnover.
Defense is inherently high-variance in the modern NFL. Last year’s elite Broncos defense had its stinkers, and 2023’s historically great Cleveland Browns defense was shredded for 45 points in the playoffs. This one showing shouldn’t define Denver’s defense, but it should raise a lot of red flags inside Broncos Country. This team’s build for 2025 and the next few subsequent seasons is predicated on having a high-end defense.
If the Broncos’ defense winds up being closer to the group we saw in Week 2 than the dominance we saw in Week 1, back-to-back playoff appearances seem far-fetched.
Sean Payton, Darren Rizzi, and Wil Lutz
Through two weeks, the Denver Broncos have been a sloppy team, and that falls on Sean Payton as the CEO of the operation. He even took the fall for the disastrous end of the game during his Monday press conference.
How the Broncos gave away what should’ve just been a sloppy win is something that could haunt the team all season, especially if they find themselves in the wildcard hunt against those same Colts.
First, that’s on Wil Lutz for inexplicably hooking a 42-yard kick that would have demanded Indianapolis to score a touchdown on the game’s final possession, instead of being allowed to position themselves for a game-winning field goal. Since the start of 2024, Lutz had been perfect on kicks inside 50 yards, outside of the stunning blocked kick against the Chiefs last year.
However, the Broncos still would have survived, if not for the leveraging penalty called on the game’s final play, and, ultimately, the blame for that play is on Darren Rizzi. Yes, Payton took responsibility for approving the call, and he does deserve some blame, but the error is more on the special teams coach for trying the gamble in the first place, on a 60-yard attempt, from a kicker without a single make from 50-plus yards.
No one would have faulted the Broncos for failing to block the field goal. Making a mental error worthy of a penalty is the one thing that had to be avoided, and Rizzi couldn’t get his unit to come through there. It’s not on the referees for calling an obvious penalty, nor is it on Dondrea Tillman for doing what he was told.
That mistake is on Rizzi, and it could cost the Broncos dearly.
And, ultimately, Rizzi’s failings are the responsibility of Payton. Denver’s head coach elected to part ways with special teams coordinator Ben Kotwica, despite the unit playing well last year, seemingly so that Payton could bring in ‘his guy’. The season is long, but right now, it seems like the Broncos downgraded their special teams just to get an old pal in the building.
Denver’s General Mental Health
Not much more to say than that. What a brutal loss.
