MVP

Shaquil Barrett, in the first start of his young career, was filling big shoes this week. With DeMarcus Ware unable to play, Kubiak decided to start the second-year outside linebacker Sunday afternoon. He played beyond expectations.

In spot play through five weeks he has already made an impact, but Sunday he helped change the game. In the third quarter and the Broncos lead sitting at only three points, he came off the edge untouched and hit McCown from his blind side, knocked the ball loose and recovered it. The Broncos quickly turned the turnover into three points.

“He’s been that way all year. I don’t care what his name is or where he’s from, but I know that when it’s down to a play, he makes plays,” Kubiak said of Barrett after the game. “All I know is every time I looked up, he was making plays. What an opportunity he’s gotten and what good job he’s done taking advantage of it.”

Barrett finished the day with an incredible stat line. He had nine combined tackles, three for a loss, two quarterback hits,  1.5 sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

Honorable mentions: Aqib Talib and T.J. Ward also had excellent games. Talib had the play of the game, interception McCown and returning it for the touchdown. Ward was great in coverage throughout the day and made seven tackles and had one pass defended.

Offensive MVP

Ronnie Hillman exploded for the rushing yards Kubiak and the Broncos have been searching for for weeks. The Broncos ultimately passed 48 times but they also tried to stay balanced, running the ball 33 times. Hillman accounted for 111 yards on 20 carries for a superb average of 5.6 per carry. When asked after the game what the offense did well he was clear.

“Run the ball. We had to help the defense, we can’t keep them on the field too long. They are really good but we need to keep them off the field as much as possible. I think us running the ball and being successful with it helped manage the game a little better.”

Hillman now owes a 4.89 average per carry on the season and appears to be the more suited back for Kubiak’s system. Anderson did add 41 yards on 13 carries Sunday but has not had the same effect on defenses through six games.

Honorable mention: Emmanuel Sanders had four receptions on 12 targets for 109 yards and a touchdown Sunday. He didn’t connect with Manning as much as he could have but his effort is unrivaled each week. Also, the offensive line did not allow a sack Sunday.