PFSN’s Jacob Infante released his weekly Power Rankings on Sunday before Monday’s results. In it, he lists the previous week’s ranking and playoff odds, followed by commentary on the team. The Denver Broncos, meanwhile, are 8-2, atop the AFC West, and the No. 2 seed in the AFC Conference. It’ll be interesting to see where Infante has the Broncos ranked for Broncos fans.
Broncos Slot on the Power Rankings
Infante has the Broncos ranked No. 7 in his Week 11 Power Rankings, with a 91.9% chance to make the playoffs. The Broncos were also ranked No. 7 last week.
“A 10-7 win over a team like the Raiders is hardly enough to consider the Denver Broncos a true Super Bowl contender. For a team to be in that tier, they’d need to have won by a lot more. That said, it’s tough to ignore Denver’s seven-game winning streak and 8-2 record,” Infante wrote.
Infante is right. Against a better offense, the Broncos lose on “Thursday Night Football” in Week 10. Because of a seven-game winning streak, though, the Broncos are still a top 10 team. But Week 11’s results against the Kansas City Chiefs will be heavily scrutinized.
Last season, the Broncos nearly beat the Chiefs on a last-second field goal that was blocked to end the game in their first matchup. The Chiefs played backups in the second matchup. Infante continued.
“With matchups against the Chiefs, Chargers, and Packers coming up, the Broncos will need more offensive firepower to finish atop the AFC. However, you take wins however you can get them in the NFL, and Denver is well-positioned for another postseason appearance this year,” Infante wrote.
The Broncos are well-positioned for another postseason appearance. The question becomes whether Nix rises to the level of a franchise quarterback before the regular season ends. It’s the difference between Joe Burrow and Kirk Cousins. Nix, in his second season, is young enough to have an untapped ceiling.
The second half of the season will be crucial for Nix. His range of outcomes heading into Year 3 is as wide as his weekly game performances. Nix has four three-plus touchdown games and three sub-70 passer rating games as well. The real Nix will stand up in the second half of the season.