The Broncos just did something they haven’t done in 38 years
There is no doubt that the Broncos are learning how to win games after six years of frittering them away.
They have taken on the identity of a team that is equal parts resilient and resourceful. They have three wins already this season by three or fewer points — in other words, as many of those wins in the last six games as they had in their previous 50.
But is it sustainable?
Well, resourcefulness is a trait. But how do the Broncos get there? It might take on a different path in the coming weeks out of necessity, because when it comes to turnover margin, the Broncos just accomplished something in their last two games that they hadn’t done in 38 years.
That is the Broncos’ turnover margin over the last two games—their best such figure in a two-game stretch in the same season since they won consecutive games over the Indianapolis Colts and Seattle Seahawks, also with a plus-7 turnover margin.
Takeaways to this degree aren’t reliable components. The Broncos have two straight games with at least four takeaways; as Broncos PR noted, that hasn’t happened since the last game of 1991 and the first of 1992.
The number of games played by the Broncos this season was decided by 3 or fewer points. This is the highest such tally through nine games in team history.
Denver is 3-2 in these games, having won three in succession after losing to Las Vegas and Washington by a combined 3 points in the season’s opening fortnight.
8 out of 11
The number of times the Broncos fed Jaleel McLaughlin the football relative to the number of snaps he had Monday night
This marks the third consecutive game in which the Broncos have fed him the football on at least 70 percent of his snaps.
Against Green Bay, he received five handoffs and was targeted on two pass plays, accumulating 46 yards with seven opportunities in 10 snaps (70 percent) — an average of 6.6 yards per time involved, including the targeted pass he did not catch. Seven days later, against Kansas City, he tallied 39 yards on six touches, spread among eight snaps (75 percent). That generated an average of 6.5 yards per touch.
But he was considerably less effective in Buffalo; his eight opportunities in 11 total plays netted just 12 yards — 1.5 yards per touch.
McLaughlin remains a high-ceiling, explosive back, but the Bills keyed on him when he checked in, likely realizing the tendency. Denver might need to use him as a decoy to take advantage.
