Sean Payton: ‘We still have a lot of things we have to improve upon’

It took a decade for the Denver Broncos to get back to the top of the AFC West. After hoisting the franchise’s third Lombardi Trophy by winning Super Bowl 50, there hasn’t been much to write home about for the Broncos who have floundered in obscurity most every season since 2015.

However, all that has changed. The past is the past, and the future looks quite bright for the Broncos. They are once again rightful kings of the AFC West after defeating the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas coupled with the Los Angeles Chargers falling to the Houston Texans this past Saturday.

Through seventeen weeks, the Broncos have reeled off an impressive thirteen victories. Decisive wins have been few and far between, but the team’s penchant for delivering monumental comebacks and grinding out and winning hard-fought battles is one of the reasons why they’ve been so successful. That’s a most-welcomed change considering it’s an area the had struggled with for ages.

But this year’s Broncos are just built different. They’re a mentally tough team who rarely folds in the face of adversity. They’ve got a swagger and moxie about them that seemingly always has them in position to find a way to win when it matters most.

Prior to the season, Head Coach Sean Payton and the team talked about their goals for the season. From the advent of training camp, they all felt that this team was capable of something special. Super Bowl aspirations are lofty goal for any team, but Payton noted that this team was confident from the get-go relative to achieving such a goal.

“We put ourselves in this position, and we still have a lot of things we have to improve on,” Payton stated.

There are a handful of things Denver could to that would better position themselves for a deep playoff run. Being more consistent on offensive and finishing drives with touchdowns as opposed to field goals is certainly one. Limiting their self-inflicted wounds and mistakes with respect to penalties and drops would be another.

Far too often, those two have been major issues for them throughout the season. Even so, they’ve gotten to where they are today. But neither of those are the primary focus to rectify moving forward. Above all else, Payton mentioned that generating turnovers is something that needs to happen if they hope to bring home Denver’s fourth Super Bowl victory in franchise history.

“The one area that has to improve is the turnover margin, and that can happen. We did a collective of the last 25 years of Super Bowl winners. It’s something like 114 in the plus,” Payton said.

“When the playoffs begin, the Rams recently were the only minus-two turnover team. The rest added up to some crazy number, and so that’s something we have to improve on,” added Payton.

To date, the Broncos have forced just 12 turnovers between their defensive and special team efforts whilst turning the ball over 17 times. Sporting a -5-turnover margin, the Broncos are eighth worst in the NFL. Is that Super Bowl caliber? Definitely not.

The saving grace for the Broncos’ defensive efforts this season have been their ferocious pass rush, red zone defense, and limiting teams on third downs. Alas, since the bye week, the Broncos have taken a step back a bit in all three areas.

If they can improve upon those, as well as start generating some game-changing turnovers, that could ultimately be the formula that helps them achieve what they had set out to do earlier this summer. With Justin Herbert scheduled to be out of action for Sunday’s Week 18 matchup, the Broncos will have the opportunity to rattle Trey Lance. A former top pick from North Dakota State, Lance has four turnovers in fifteen games played since being drafted in 2021.

Will the Broncos rise to the occasion and take care of business in front of an electric hometown crowd this Sunday? I think they will. Moreover, believe forcing a turnover or two will be a key reason why the obtain the #1 seed and homefield advantage in the playoffs.