The Denver Broncos are under the bright lights of primetime today. Which three players should Broncos fans keep their eyes on in tonight’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals?
Denver Broncos three players to watch vs. Cincinnati Bengals
The Denver Broncos offense will have to get itself into rhythm tonight if they hope to win on Monday Night Football and two players on that side of the ball are featured in our players to watch, plus one Broncos defensive player will be looking for a revenge game tonight.
J.K. Dobbins could snap Broncos’ streak without 100-yard rusher
The Denver Broncos have not had a 100-yard rusher in 37 straight games dating back to the end of 2022, and J.K. Dobbins could be in line to snap that streak.
It starts with Sean Payton making a concerted effort to commit to the ground game. As a member of the Chargers last year, Dobbins rushed 11 times for 56 yards and two touchdowns against the Bengals, including a game-winner.
The Bengals have allowed over 100 yards rushing in their last two games, with the Jacksonville Jaguars running for 139 yards in Week 2, and surrendering 169 yards this past week to the Minnesota Vikings and 116 to Jordan Mason, individually.
Dobbins has been the catalyst in the run game early on for Denver with a 19-yard touchdown run in Week 1, a 23-yard run against the Indianapolis Colts that saw him finish with 14 carries for 76 yards, and a 41-yard run in Week 3 against the Chargers that saw him finish with 11 carries for 83 yards.
Had Denver stuck with the run game more in the fourth quarter, Dobbins could have very well snapped this long-standing streak.
With the Bengals defense allowing 119.0 yards per game on the ground, Dobbins and RJ Harvey have a chance to get Denver’s run game going.
Bo Nix needs to let it rip
Coming into tonight’s game, the Bengals are ranked in the bottom ten through three games in passing yards allowed per game, allowing 240.7 yards per game (25th), going into Week 4.
Bo Nix has a chance to capitalize tonight if the Broncos’ offense can establish some balance between the run and pass game with success. The best way to do that is by gashing the Bengals on the ground first, which can then open up more play-action opportunities for Nix and the offense.
But what I’d like to see in the passing game is an emphasis on getting the quick game going with some 1-step, 3-step dropbacks and letting Nix fire it quickly, compared to some of the longer developing plays that they’ve run.
After last year, the Bengals will likely continue to try and bracket Courtland Sutton, who has seen quite a bit of those looks from defenses this year, which means that Evan Engram, Troy Franklin, Marvin Mims, and hopefully a little bit more of Pat Bryant get some involvement in the passing game.
After Weeks 1 and 2, defenses have started to shift toward trying to account for Franklin, especially on second and third down, which opened up opportunities for Sutton in Week 3 to make plays.
Denver’s overall volume/production distribution has to spread out in order for the offense to find its footing.
Also, don’t be surprised if Nix dials up a deep shot early on after everybody collectively lost their minds after a couple of fingertip misses against the Chargers.
Riley Moss revenge game
Riley Moss against Tee Higgins, part two.
One of the most tiring arguments this season is Broncos’ fans hyperactive narrative against Moss. After Moss returned from a knee injury last year against the Bengals, Higgins caught 11 passes for 131 yards and three touchdowns, two of them against Moss in that late game in 2024.
Eight of Higgin’s 11 catches came against Moss on nine targets, but if you go back and watch the film, Moss’s coverage was as tight as it could be.
That game suddenly painted a negative perception of Moss, but not a lot of people understand the cornerback position. A lot of observers see a catch and see a defender in the area and automatically assign blame. They don’t know whether it’s man coverage, man coverage with safety help over the top, or zone coverage.
Moss has been one of the most targeted corners this season, which was a natural expectation with the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Patrick Surtain II, playing opposite him. He’s played well this season, and the film and numbers support that.
According to NFL Next Gen Stats, “Moss has been targeted 27 times (2nd-most in NFL) this season and has allowed only 12 receptions, fewer than any other player with 20+ targets. Moss has maintained an average of 2.6 yards of separation in coverage, the 2nd-tightest coverage in the NFL (min. 50 coverage snaps).”
He’s only given up one touchdown this season, where he was draped in coverage against Keenan Allen, who only had 0.6 yards of separation on the play, per NFL Next Gen Stats. He forced the Broncos’ only interception so far this season, tipping a pass to Brandon Jones.
Even though Jake Browning is the quarterback for Cincy tonight, I’d expect them to try to go to Higgins a lot in this game to try to break the slump that he’s in through their first three games. A Moss pick-six or interception would be the ultimate redemption, and it’s possible considering Browning’s five interceptions thrown in two games.
Kickoff is set for 6:15 p.m. on ABC.