The Denver Broncos avoided an 0-3 start and won Sunday’s road game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 26-7 behind Bo Nix’s composed day under center and the defense’s aggressive approach against Baker Mayfield.
Denver Broncos snag first win of season vs. Tampa Bay
The Broncos offense, Bo Nix, and the Denver defense came up big as they shut out the outside noise this week to get their first win of the season in hostile territory where they controlled the flow of the game for the entire morning.
Bo Nix, Broncos offense delivers on the road
The Broncos offense and rookie quarterback Bo Nix got off to an impressive start in the first half of Sunday’s game. Nix and Denver’s offense opened up 4-for-4 on his first series, which saw him uncork the football downfield to Courtland Sutton, and Josh Reynolds helped spark their early lead.
At one point in the second quarter, Nix was 12-of-14 passing for 117 yards, and Denver’s offense was in control, averaging 5.8 yards per play. Denver’s offense was much better on first and second down which helped Nix and the unit sustain drives, and on top of that, pass protection was consistently good in the first half. Third down was an area they struggled with early on, but the offense capitalized on two fourth-down plays in the first half, which helped offset the third down conversion rate.
After the Bucs scored right before halftime, Nix marched the offense downfield in a two-minute drill on a 9-play 50-yard drive with Wil Lutz nailing a 38-yard field goal to give Denver a 20-7 lead. Nix’s composure in the pocket was something that stood out in the first half, and he looked more comfortable.
Not only did Nix run the offense well in the passing game, but he also showcased great sense in the pocket and when it was about to become unclean. He tucked and ran on a few plays and was once again the team’s leading rusher on the afternoon until Tyler Badie rattled off a 43-yard run in the fourth quarter.
Badie made a case for himself to start, as he’s demonstrated more explosiveness in between the tackles, while Williams has struggled.
Broncos defense flusters Baker Mayfield, Bucs offense
Vance Joseph and the Broncos’ defense came out with an aggressive gameplan in the first half of Sunday’s game. Brandon Jones first interception of the season helped keep the momentum rolling for Denver that had. They held Tampa Bay to 1-of-5 on third down in the first half, but gave up some chunk plays in the final three minutes of the second quarter.
Bucs rookie running back Bucky Irving sparked Tampa Bay on one series with a huge chunk 32-yard run that saw them punch it in against Denver’s defense, which trimmed their lead to 17-7 at halftime.
Dondrea Tillman, who was promoted to the 53-man roster this week after Baron Browning landed on injured reserve, came up with his first career sack in the third quarter. He jumped into the rotation alongside rookie Jonah Elliss as Jonathon Cooper and Nik Bonitto got the start. Denver’s outside pass rush generated several pressure looks against Baker Mayfield and did a great job of keeping contain, preventing him from using his legs to extend plays.
The Broncos defense notched seven sacks on the afternoon with Tillman getting two, Jonathon Cooper, Nik Bonitto, Devon Key, Zach Allen, and John Franklin-Myers each getting one. Riley Moss came up big once again with good coverage, six tackles, and a forced fumble that was recovered by Jones, who had his second takeaway of the day.
They held the Bucs to 223 total yards and seven points and limited them on third down, forcing them to go 3-of-11.
This was a huge win for the Broncos.
