Broncos Stock Report: 4 Risers, 3 Fallers Entering Week 3

The Denver Broncos balanced the scales in the standings, after losing their home opener in Kansas City.

Denver's bounce-back performance against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Mile High restored the faith and excitement fans had in this team entering the 2026 season. The Jaguars are a quality opponent — the only team to beat the Broncos in Denver last season, finishing with 12 wins and with their divisional crown.

It wasn't always pretty, but true to their 2025 form, the Broncos hung in there and saved their best play for when it mattered most down the stretch, defeating the Jaguars 20-13. Sean Payton said he was "coming for" Liam Coen and the Jaguars this year; he's a man of his word.

Coming out of Week 2, there are several Broncos whose stock is red-hot and on the rise, while the arrow is pointing the opposite direction for a few others, who may be seeing diminished roles. The snap-count analysis I did for Week 2 was one way to view Denver's stock report.

With the Los Angeles Rams coming to town for a Sunday Night Football showdown, let's get specific by breaking down Denver's three biggest risers and fallers entering Week 3.

Riser: Bo Nix | QB

Coming off one of his worst performances as a pro, Nix entered Week 2 with nowhere to go but up. That's a throwaway cliche, but the truth is, after throwing an interception, fumbling three times, and taking four sacks, he needed to answer against the Jaguars.

You've heard me say it before: the Broncos will go only so far as Nix can take them. If he doesn't play well, odds are, the Broncos won't play well and they'll lose.

Nix hasn't lost many games as a pro, but Week 1 illustrated just how crucial he — as the Broncos' young franchise quarterback — is to the team's success. Fast forward to Week 2, and the early returns on a bounce-back game weren't that encouraging.

Nix struggled to convert on third down and he threw a rare red-zone interception. But the third-year pro hung tough, and he seemed to extract energy and confidence from the Mile High Faithful thronged at Empower Field.

After scoring just three first-half points, Nix put together a decent drive on Denver's opening possession of the third quarter, ending with a badly needed field goal. From there, though, all it took was a big play by Riley Moss on defense to spark Nix, and the rest is history.

Once again, Nix saved his best for last, turning in another quintessential fourth-quarter performance that saw him dealing against the Jaguars' smothering defense. He connected on multiple explosive plays down the field, feeding Jaylen Waddle, and leading the Broncos to victory over a quality opponent.

Nix finished 22-of-31 for 288 yards and a touchdown, with that pesky interception, and a 97.2 rating. Seeing him turn it on in the second half assuaged the concerns many Broncos fans had after seeing him struggle so mightily in Kansas City.

Nix is back. Doubt him at your peril.

Faller: Jahdae Barron | CB

Barron makes this list, not because of what he did against the Jaguars, but because of what he didn't do. Namely, play.

Barron saw his already low snap share diminish from four snaps in Week 1 to just two in Week 2. His lack of a role on defense is disappointing, given the first-round pick the Broncos invested in him last year.

The truth is, Barron didn't showcase a big Year-2 jump in training camp, and showed signs of regression in the preseason. Now it appears the coaches' trust in him is diminished, which calls into question the wisdom of drafting him where Denver did.

Last season, the Broncos found ways to include Barron on game day, even with one of the NFL's best cornerback trios ahead of him. He was used in sub-packages and occassionally as a tight end neutralizer.

We've seen no sign or interest in the Broncos finding a way to get Barron on the field like they did last year. The question is why? It has a lot to do with what he showed this summer.

It would appear the Broncos are down on their 2025 first-round pick. Fans might not see him much until and unless there's an injury ahead of him on the cornerback depth chart. Knock on wood.

Riser: Jonah Coleman | RB

Coleman started off the season as the No. 3 running back on the depth chart. The Broncos dressed Coleman over Tyler Badie in the season opener, but only gave the rookie three snaps.

Against Jacksonville, though, RJ Harvey was ruled out as a game-time decision (hamstring), so the Broncos dressed both Coleman and Badie behind starter J.K. Dobbins. Then Dobbins suffered a hamstring injury of his own, and instead of turning to the veteran Badie, the Broncos leaned on Coleman.

The rookie answered with some tough second-half running into the teeth of the Jaguars' stiff defense. Eventually, the Broncos were able to grind Jacksonville's front seven down, and after tying the game, one possession earlier, the give went to Coleman on the Jaguars' 3-yard line.

He punched it in, paying homage and respect to Terrell Davis with a Mile High Salute celebration in the end zone, and notching his first career touchdown in front of Broncos Country. On Denver's final possession, protecting a seven-point lead, the Broncos again leaned on Coleman, who broke off several big runs to keep the chains moving and kill the clock.

In his first real offensive action as a pro, Coleman finished with 39 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries and caught all three of his targets for 19 yards. The rookie earned nothing but praise from his coaches and teammates post-game. This kid's stock is on the rise.

Faller: Courtland Sutton | WR

Sutton's biggest impact in this game was serving as a decoy and sucking coverage away from Waddle. Waddle had a huge game, catching eight passes for 138 yards, and on his longest reception of the day — a 49-yard dime from Nix — Sutton drew in the safety underneath that allowed Denver's newest weapon to get one-on-one coverage and take the top off Jacksonville's defense.

The Broncos did try to get Sutton a touchdown, but Nix was picked off in the end zone. Sutton finished with just three catches on four targets for 25 yards.

Counting his two catches for 11 yards in the season opener, the past two weeks have been Sutton's least productive two-game stretch since Nix became the quarterback in 2024. Waddle's emergence is great and definitely something that needed to happen, but I don't think the Broncos wanted it usher it in at the expense of Sutton.

Riser: Que Robinson | OLB

Robinson was a consistent force against the Kansas City Chiefs, and he followed that up with a productive performance in Week 2. In relief of starters Nik Bonitto and Jonah Elliss, Robinson totaled two pressures on Trevor Lawerence, a hurry, and a sack.

In Year 2, Robinson's role has expanded from being an regular healthy scratch as a rookie to being an impact player on defense. How much of that has to do with Jonathon Cooper being on the commissioner's exempt list is up for debate, but there's no question that Robinson is capitalizing on his opportunity to play more.

Robinson may not be a starter, but he is producing when he's on the field (19 snaps vs. Jacksonville).

Faller: Eyioma Uwazurike | DL

After serving a one-year suspension for violating the NFL's gambling policy, Uwazurike returned to the field in 2024 and impressed everyone at Broncos HQ with his play. So much so that when John Franklin-Myers's contract expired, the Broncos decided to let him walk, confident in the outlook of Uwazurike and Malcolm Roach.

So far, Roach has risen to the occasion in JFM's former starting role on the defensive line. Uwazurike has not. One of Uwazurike's strong suits last season was his stout play as a run defender, but that has been nowhere to be seen through these first two weeks.

Against Jacksonville, Uwazurike was bullied and pushed around — ironic because he's Denver's biggest and longest D-lineman — finishing as one of the team's lowest-graded defenders. If he doesn't turn it around soon, the Broncos could decide to start dressing rookie third-rounder Tyler Onyedim, who was one of the best run-defending defensive tackles in the 2026 draft class.

Riser: Jaylen Waddle | WR

This one goes without saying, but I shudder to think what comments I'd get on social media if I didn't mention Waddle here. The dude showed out in his first-ever home game at Mile High, and that's exactly what you want to see.

Waddle's speed, route-running prowess, and understanding of coverages — the "game within the game," as he calls it — were on full display and he showed reliability with his hands to top it all off. If the Broncos can continue to capitalize on the vertical threat he poses to defenses, while also working in Sutton, this offense will be very hard to handle, especially with the talent at quarterback, offensive line, and running back — not to mention tight end Evan Engram.

After not making an impact in the season opener, Waddle made up for lost time with an absolutely monster performance. It's a shame that his longest reception of the day wasn't one yard longer. He'd have scored his first touchdown as a Bronco, too.

Sign up for our free Denver Broncos On SI newsletter and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!

Add us as a preferred source on Google