2014 Broncos Season, Week Eight

It’s time for our Broncos recap for the week. Another week, another huge win for the AFC’s No. 1 seed.

Week Eight: Broncos 35, San Diego Chargers 21

Season Record: 6-1 (5-0 Home)

Key Play: In the opening drive of the third quarter, leading 14-7, Broncos’ cornerback Chris Harris broke on a ball from Phillip Rivers, picking it off. On the ensuing drive, Peyton Manning connected with Emmanuel Sanders on his third touchdown pass of the night, building a 14-point lead. The Broncos maintained that lead throughout the end of the game.

Recap: The Broncos had one home loss last season, the only AFC West loss of Manning’s Bronco career. It came on a Thursday night game against the Chargers deep in the season. The Broncos looked like they were determined not to let that happen again, and along the way they increased their division lead and maintained the top spot in the conference. In addition, with a balance of explosive offense and a strong defense, the Broncos are beginning to look like the favorites to reach the Super Bowl again. But it’s the mid-point in the season, and the Broncos have three straight games on the road, so there’s not time to get cocky. Still, it’s hard not to appreciate a game in which the team made big strides. The Broncos were tough on defense against a good AFC opponent, and the team displayed the explosive offense that we expected to begin the season. The Broncos even made strides on Special Teams. Andre Caldwell and Isaiah Burse each had a couple nice returns, though Caldwell probably should have been charged with a fumble. Now, the Broncos are off for 10 days before facing the New England Patriots, a team that has to handle a tough Bears’ squad on Sunday. If the Broncos win that game, they could be in good shape to hit an easier portion of the schedule and build on their division and conference leads.

Game Balls:

·       *   Emmanuel Sanders. The receiver continues to shine. He already has the most catches of any Bronco, and with four touchdowns in two weeks – including a three touchdown game Thursday – he’s looking like a key cog in the offense.

·         * Ronnie Hillman. Montee Ball will be back in the next few weeks, but it doesn’t matter. Hillman had another 100-yard game, tearing up San Diego. He’s explosive and talented, and Hillman should be the new feature back in football’s best offense.

·        *  Denver’s Defense. Those guys continue to improve. Harris and Rahim Moore had interceptions on Thursday, and Von Miller recorded another sack. This is what was missing for Denver last year.

Lingering Questions:

·       *   Penalties. The Broncos continue to get big penalties at big moments. So far they’ve overcome them, but this is still something that needs to be cleaned up. Like, maybe, next Sunday in New England.

·        *  Third Down Conversions. I love the way the defense is playing, but there’s always room for improvement. Third Down defense is one of those places. The Broncos gave up some huge third down conversions, including a third-and-20 pass to Antonio Gates on the Chargers’ first scoring drive. That needs to get cleaned up.