The Lead
During the fourth quarter of Sunday's Week 6 game vs. the Chargers, the Broncos found a rhythm on both sides of the ball.
Denver outscored Los Angeles 16-3 in the second half as the team battled back but ultimately fell short in the divisional matchup.
But as Denver quickly turned its attention to a "Thursday Night Football" showdown with the Saints, carrying this momentum over into the early stages of the Week 7 game has been a point of emphasis for the team.
"It [has] been two weeks now that we've got off to kind of slow starts, and we finished strong," Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph said Tuesday of Denver's defense. "But in this league, starting the games fast is important, especially on Thursday nights. So, we made a point this week to play cleaner early, start faster and win the game early and not chase this team."
Joseph said that the Broncos' defense "settled down" in the second half of Week 6, adding that "stopping the run better and winning some third downs helped."
The unit limited Los Angeles' offense to just 29 net yards in the fourth quarter and was a perfect 3-of-3 on third-down stops during that time frame. Denver also recorded two of the team's three sacks in the second half.
Outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper said that as Denver now looks ahead to this week's matchup and beyond, it will be important for the team to bring this level of energy consistently — and especially early.
"We've got to start fast," Cooper said. "I feel like we started slow last week, and I think it was just [due] to [cornerback Pat Surtain II's] injury — and the energy kind of went down after that. We have to be able to have guys and have good enough leadership in order to keep the defense going, keep us up, spirits high … making sure we start fast no matter what they throw at us."
Rookie quarterback Bo Nix, who threw two passing touchdowns in the fourth quarter of Sunday's loss, believes the team is up for the challenge.
"We're just going to continue to execute, find ways to execute what's called, and go out there and start fast," Nix said. "I know it's not a [lack of a] sense of urgency, I know it's not [about] effort. It's not anything like that. I think we just have to take one play at a time. [We need to] make sure we're getting first downs and move the ball at a better rate at the beginning of the game."
Nix showed his potential to do just that in the fourth quarter on Sunday, and he is confident that him and his teammates can build on this moving forward as they look for quicker starts in the weeks ahead.
"We just have to continue to battle and take one game at a time," Nix said. "Keep learning when our opportunities are there and not make the same mistakes over and over."
