The Denver Broncos face another divisional opponent on Sunday, the Los Angeles Chargers. Sean Payton’s return to New Orleans on Thursday will follow.

Historically, the teams that play Thursday night struggle the Sunday prior, so that doesn’t bode well for a Payton-led squad that has had issues on offense. However, there are ways the Broncos can attack the Chargers to help them walk out with their fourth straight win. 

The Chargers defense has had a solid start to the season, though that is boosted by some of the quarterbacks they have played. The Chargers had an excellent game against the Bryce Young-led Carolina Panthers, which increased their numbers overall.

In their other three games, the Chargers defense allowed the Pittsburgh Steelers offense to have its best game, the Garnder Minshew-led Las Vegas Raiders offense to have its second-best game, and the Patrick Mahomes-led Kansas City Chiefs to have their second-worst game this season. 

The Chargers have been up and down this season, but there is one area where they haven’t been tested enough and have struggled. There have only been 25 passing attempts of 10-plus air yards against the Chargers, with five being 20-plus air yards.

This defense has the 11th-highest percentage of passing plays against them. It makes sense that teams haven’t been able to attack the Chargers on 10-plus air yards with the pass rushers that they have. 

The Broncos offense emphasizes attacking the Chargers in the intermediate and deep parts of the field. On the 20 attempts of 10-19 air yards, the Chargers have generated four pressures and allowed the 11th-highest EPA/Pass in that field area.

Then, on the 20-plus air yards, the Chargers are one of four teams with under 10 passing attempts of this distance. They allowed one touchdown with two pressures on these five passes. The key for the Broncos here is to keep the pass rush at bay. 

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On the flip side, the Broncos defense needs to shut down the Chargers’ quicker passing game and force Justin Herbert to hold the ball and try to make plays happen. Herbert has been dealing with an ankle injury, leading to a limited and struggling passing offense, especially on plays over 2.5 seconds. 

Now, the Chargers have called 102 passing plays in four games, 42 of which have been under 2.5 seconds. They have the second-highest EPA/pass on those plays and the eighth-highest yards after catch over expected with +54, meaning they are picking up 54 extra yards after the catch beyond what was expected.

However, the Chargers also give up the sixth-highest pressure rate on these passes. The Broncos still want to force them to take longer. 

On passing plays over 2.5 seconds, the Chargers have the third-lowest passing yards per play at 3.3. They aren’t pushing the ball and end up dumping it off, and also have the sixth-lowest yards after catch over expected at -6, meaning they aren’t meeting the expectation.

The Chargers are facing the third-highest pressure rate and 11th-highest sack rate, allowing the third-fastest time to pressure at 2.55 seconds. So, you force Herbert to hold onto the ball, and the offensive efficiency of the passing game goes out the window. 

The Chargers will check it down, which the Broncos are okay with, as the defense does a good job coming downhill to make the play. However, the Broncos excel when forcing teams to hold onto the ball, as they have the best defensive EPA/Pass in these situations. Denver also boasts the fifth-best pressure rate and second-best sack rate. 

So, the Broncos offense wants to hold the Chargers’ pass rush at bay to attack the intermediate and deep parts of the field. Meanwhile, the Broncos defense wants to force Herbert to hold onto the ball.

If the Broncos can do this, it will go a long way toward getting to 4-2 and putting them in an exceptional position for the rest of the season. 

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Go to: Candidate Q&A home page • Denver Post Voter Guide

Rebecca Keltie Rep

Residence: Colorado Springs
Profession: Engineer
Education: Military and civilian degrees
Experience: My experience includes 21 years in the military, working with foreign leaders, government agencies and private sector business leaders.
Campaign website

What are your top three priorities, if elected?
– Education and parental rights
– Veteran and senior issues and programs
– Protecting business rights and smart development

Recent polling has shown trust in government hovering at historically low levels and stark partisan divides in views of election integrity. What will you do to bridge those gaps?
Offering mutual respect and having effective conversations without emotions. Election integrity is of utmost importance. It should be treated with the same level of security as our military.

What specific actions would you support to improve affordability for Coloradans, whether aimed at housing costs, tax burdens or other impacts?
Lowering taxes and fees is where we need to start. Cutting unnecessary spending and plugging leaks is next. When we are in times like we are in, pulling back and tightening the purse strings isn’t just needed, it’s of utmost importance. In addition, I would like Colorado join other states in removing taxes for our seniors on Social Security.

What should the legislature do when it comes to addressing greenhouse gas emissions and regulating oil and gas development?
Having worked in atmospheric sciences for nearly two decades, I know where the issues are and are not when it comes to climate challenges.
There’s nothing better than a “monster” under the bed to motivate people to loosen their wallets to get rid of it. Most of Colorado’s current legislators are unqualified to make such decisions. This is where experts must be brought in with realistic facts and reliable data without emotions or agendas. Until that happens, nothing should be done legislatively other than picking up our trash and cleaning up our local surroundings.

Whether your party is in the majority or minority next year, where do you see actionable common ground with the opposing party?
I believe once we put emotions aside there are more things we agree on than not. Let’s start there. With the new leadership elected this term I am hoping better conversations will be had with more open minds with the voices of the people of Colorado heard and honored.

Steph Vigil (i) Dem

Residence: Colorado Springs
Profession: Independent contractor
Education: Some college
Experience: Service industry, independent contractor
Campaign website

What are your top three priorities, if elected?
Housing and transportation: Colorado needs housing for every budget and transportation for every lifestyle to ensure a good quality of life for all, a more vibrant economy, and a healthy, sustainable environment.

Worker empowerment: the way we work is changing, and we need new tools and protections to ensure that the future of work serves all Coloradans.

Civil rights: we’ve seen an increasingly hostile far right movement that’s already tried to overthrow an election and is undoing decades of progress via activist SCOTUS justices. Colorado must lead by defending our core values of self-determination, free expression, and robust civic engagement.

Recent polling has shown trust in government hovering at historically low levels and stark partisan divides in views of election integrity. What will you do to bridge those gaps?
Colorado’s election system is unparalleled, and it’s unfortunate that it’s become a partisan issue after all these years of serving us so well. I strongly encourage everyone to learn how the system works, and be skeptical of anyone who sows distrust without evidence, or insists that any election they lose couldn’t have been fair; that’s someone who just doesn’t want to earn your vote. Governments get their legitimacy from the consent of the people, and therefore every candidate for public office should want to maximize participation, support our election workers, and then get out there and earn the votes.

What specific actions would you support to improve affordability for Coloradans, whether aimed at housing costs, tax burdens or other impacts?
Over the last 20 years there has been a $50 trillion transfer of wealth from the bottom 90% to the top 1%, which has dealt a terrible blow to working families. We have simultaneously suppressed housing and transportation choices with overly restrictive land use policies, and put insufficient public investment into essentials like child care, healthcare, and higher education. If you work hard at any job, you shouldn’t be too poor to live. We must free up our housing market and promote infill development, strengthen working people’s right to collectively bargain, and hold big business accountable for their excesses.

What should the legislature do when it comes to addressing greenhouse gas emissions and regulating oil and gas development?
I’m proud that Colorado is a national leader in pursuing a just and equitable transition to all-renewable energy. The dust is still settling on the big agreement with oil and gas to pay extraction fees, but it’s promising to have dedicated funds for reducing emissions from transportation and buildings, and furthering our conservation efforts. Importantly, environmental damage does not hurt everyone equally: Black, indigenous, and other communities of color historically get hit with the worst air quality problems and other environmental hazards, and we must center those communities’ needs and voices as we move into a clean, renewable energy future.

Whether your party is in the majority or minority next year, where do you see actionable common ground with the opposing party?
I’ve observed a couple of such policy areas. One is preserving and protecting our beautiful state, and taking care of the great outdoors, even if we disagree on how exactly to go about it. Another area of common interest is having reliable and efficient public services. This is why I passed a bill to raise the bar on county coroner qualifications, for instance. There are a variety of opinions on what all should be public, but we do tend to agree that the public services we have should simply work, and deliver effective outcomes for residents whenever the need arises.

How candidate order was determined: A lot drawing was held at the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office on Aug. 7, 2024, to determine the general election ballot order for major and minor party candidates for U.S. House, State Board of Education, CU Regent, State Senate, State House, and District Attorney races. Colorado law (1-5-404, C.R.S.) requires that candidates are ordered on the ballot in three tiers: major party candidates followed by minor party candidates followed by unaffiliated candidates. Within each tier, the candidates are ordered by a lot drawing with the exception of the President and Vice President race, which is ordered by the last name of the presidential candidate. Questionnaires were not sent to write-in candidates.

Stay up-to-date with Colorado Politics by signing up for our weekly newsletter, The Spot.

Originally Published: October 11, 2024 at 12:01 a.m.

Former Oregon Ducks and current Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix has had a rough start to their season. The team started off 0-2 and Nix threw for only 384 yards and had four interceptions with no touchdowns. Additionally, his only score through two games was a rushing touchdown in the season opener.

However, since the Broncos’ Sept. 15 loss to Pittsburgh, Denver and Nix have really turned a corner, winning three straight heading into their AFC West matchup vs. the Los Angeles Chargers. Nix particularly has improved mightily during the Broncos’ win streak, throwing for over 200 yards in two wins, and throwing for three touchdowns and most importantly, no interceptions.

Nix has lead Denver to some impressive wins including a 26-7 win over Tampa Bay on Sept. 22, who was red hot at the time. The rookie quarterback threw for 216 yards and completed nearly 70 percent of his passes, as he completed 25 of 36 attempts. Nix also utilized what might be his most underrated weapon which would be his legs, scrambling for 47 yards and a touchdown on nine carries as he would pick up his first career win as an NFL player.

Denver would follow it up with a gritty road win as they traveled to New York and defeated the Jets in the pouring rain where Nix would pick up his first career touchdown pass as well as a win over Aaron Rodgers.

They would put it all together during their first AFC West division game of the season vs. the Las Vegas Raiders.

Nix would throw for 206 yards and two touchdowns as he led the Broncos to a 34-18 win at home.

The development that Denver head coach Sean Payton has had with Nix over the course of five games has been something to watch. In a media availability session on Wednesday, Nix reiterated that staying consistent is what has been working for the young quarterback.

“Consistency is the key, you know. I’ve been able to make strides just in five week, but (I) gotta continue to find those areas of improvement each game. You’re always going to want to look back and want a few back, and make some mistakes in games and wish you could do them different.”

Nix also said that he wants to keep the turnovers down, something he has been able to do recently after a turnover-filled start to the season.

“Being consistent I think is the main thing and continuing not to turn the ball over and putting your team in a good spot.”

Nix hand the Broncos will take on fellow Oregon Ducks alum Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.

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