The Denver Broncos lost five of their first six games this season, and it looked like 2023 would be another miserable lost season for them.
They had hired former Super Bowl-winning head coach Sean Payton during the offseason in the hopes he would revive what was an abysmal offense last season, as well as future Hall of Fame quarterback Russell Wilson, who had a terrible 2022 campaign.
Suddenly, the Broncos have won four games in a row, and Wilson’s play, in general, has been much better and has more closely resembled the level he was at during his 10 seasons with the Seattle Seahawks.
Their defense, which had been very porous, has also shown signs of improvement, and thus starting safety Justin Simmons says the team’s confidence “is at an all-time high,” per Zac Stevens.
Justin Simmons: “Confidence is at an all-time high” in the Broncos’ locker room.
— Zac Stevens (@ZacStevensDNVR) November 22, 2023
In their last five games, Denver hasn’t given up more than 22 points in a single game, and during their current winning streak, they have held each of their opponents to under 215 passing yards.
They have found some success by forcing turnovers — they have forced 12 turnovers in their last three games and rank second in the NFL in forced turnovers for the season.
Most notably, when they defeated the Buffalo Bills in Week 10, they forced quarterback Josh Allen into two interceptions and a fumble, and two weeks prior to that, they harassed the seemingly invincible Patrick Mahomes into throwing two picks and zero touchdown passes.
With a 5-5 record, the Broncos are one game behind the seventh-place Pittsburgh Steelers for the final AFC Wild Card spot, and they of course are thinking they could sneak into the postseason.
