Broncos Climb in NFL Power Rankings After Wild Jets Win

Last week, the Denver Broncos finally broke the ice, defeating the New York Jets 37-28 to notch their first win of the 2020 campaign. This season has seen a comedy of injuries for the Broncos — the dominant factor in the team's 1-3 start.

Let's recap: Denver lost its top quarterback, its No. 1 edge rusher, its No. 1 wideout, its No. 1 right tackle (opt-out), its No. 1 cornerback, its co-No. 1 running back, and its No. 1 defensive lineman. That laundry list of elite players going down doesn't include key backups like Dre'Mont Jones, DeMarcus Walker, Elijah Wilkinson, and Mark Barron also landing on injured reserve.

Honestly, the Broncos might have been able to weather the storm better had Drew Lock not gotten hurt. How many teams coming off a sub-.500 season, and being barely on the upswing of a rebuild, can survive the loss of its starting quarterback?

The answer is: none.

Already elite and productive rosters like the Kansas City Chiefs, as we saw last year, can survive such a short-term loss. But a young team relearning how to win with head coach entering his second season? Aint. Gonna. Happen.

Honestly, although one could argue that the Broncos could easily be 3-1 if the proverbial ball had bounced their way in the clutch of Weeks 1 and 2, this team is fortunate to be 1-3 at the quarter pole. In light of losing every Pro Bowler this team had, with the exception of running back Melvin Gordon, inside the first four weeks of the season, yeah, the Broncos should consider themselves fortunate to be 1-3.

Considering the state of the Broncos, where does this team sit in the NFL power rankings? It's a salient question with the season being at its one-quarter point.

Sports Illustrated's staff, which includes the likes of Albert Breer, Andrew Brandt, Gary Gramling, Mitch Goldich, Conor Orr, and Jenny Vrentas, ranked the Broncos No. 23 in its preseason poll and while the ensuing weeks saw Denver move increasingly downward to 30th as of last week, the newest NFL power rankings out of the mothership saw modest improvement.

29. Denver Broncos (1-3)

Last week: Win at New York Jets 37-28
Next week: at New England

Not the best spot to have to go into Foxborough—with the Patriots coming off a loss.

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The Broncos have slipped six spots since the preseason began. There's an argument for why Denver should be ranked higher than Miami, Houston, Detroit, Jacksonville, and Washington, but there's also an argument to support the Broncos trailing all five of those teams.

My argument would err on the side of the Broncos being ranked above all five of those teams currently, mostly based on the fact that Denver has played without its starting quarterback for all of the last 11 quarters and still found a way to win one game while coming dangerously close to beating Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers with Jeff Driskel playing in relief of Lock. Meanwhile, all five of those squads, one of which is still winless (Houston), haven't had to endure a QB change.

The Broncos, meanwhile, started their third quarterback of the season in Week 4, so Vic Fangio and Pat Shurmur, in my book, deserve some credit for getting the win last week on the road, even though it came at the expense of the hapless Jets.

What the Broncos have to do now, in order to climb, is defy the odds. In light of the increasing likelihood that Lock will miss at least one more game, it's going to be difficult for Denver to do.

Brett Rypien will have to go into Foxborough and stun, not an opponent like the winless Jets coached by the incompetent Adam Gase, but rather, the 2-2 New England Patriots led by the greatest head coach of the modern era. But if the Broncos have anything even remotely resembling an advantage, it's that Cam Newton is unlikely to make it out of the NFL's mandated COVID-19 quarantine in time to play.

Bill Belichick has the game tape of Rypien's performance at MetLife Stadium last week and will surely have a counterpunch dialed up. The onus is on Fangio, Shurmur, and Rypien to have their own counter to the counterpunch primed and ready to deploy.

Basically, Shurmur is going to have to unveil some wrinkles and looks that Belichick hasn't seen heretofore, and the Broncos will have to, as a team, play an inspired brand of football with few mistakes just to have a chance, even with Brian Hoyer or Jarrett Stidham (perhaps, we'll see) starting in place of Newton.

Of course, Fangio could surprise everyone and start Lock on Sunday, although, based on the fact that Lock didn't practice on Tuesday and Fangio's penchant for erring on the side of caution with regard to injured players not practicing all week in full, it's far more likely that Rypien will get his second straight start.

If the Broncos lose Week 5, they'll fall to 1-4 and slip further in the power rankings but there'll be a great chance Lock returns for Week 6's home bout vs. the Miami Dolphins. The season could take on an entirely new complexion at that point.

Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.

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