The Broncos’ 4-2 start looks sturdy on paper, but the offense has left a lot to be desired through six games. That disconnect is why four names keep jumping out when you look at who has underperformed most entering Week 7.
Denver has already navigated a brutal opening stretch and still sits in the AFC West race, with an eye on the No. 1 seed in the conference as well. But the margin for error is shrinking. If the offense keeps sputtering, the good vibes from the record can disappear quickly.
Bo Nix is first on the list, and the problems are impossible to ignore. James Palmer put it plainly on Monday:
Yes Bo Nix isn't playing well. Yes it's concerning.
Yes the Broncos think he can play himself out of it. Details below:
There are the numbers, he's 18-3 in last 21 starts. That's what the Broncos are leaning into as this conversation continues.
And why wouldn't they? Nix has…
The larger issue with Nix, at least right now, looks mental more than physical. The ankle injury seems to have left a mark, and while that doesn’t erase what he’s capable of, it has clearly slowed him down.
The Broncos have seen him move well and attack downfield before, so the talent hasn’t vanished. Still, he hasn’t played to that level this season, and that has to change.
Denver can point to its schedule and say the early slate was unforgiving. Fair enough.
But regardless of opponent, Nix needs to start putting together cleaner, better performances. He’s in the middle of a Super Bowl window with the team, and his long-term contract extension is part of the picture too.
The Broncos’ ceiling stays capped if he doesn’t find it soon.
J.K. Dobbins is another player who has not held up his end of the bargain.
Through six games, he has 270 yards on 81 carries, which works out to 3.3 yards per attempt. He has scored two touchdowns, is averaging 45 yards per game, and owns a success rate of 38.3 percent.
That is a sharp drop from 2025, when he had 91 carries for 442 yards and four touchdowns at 4.9 yards per carry through six games.
The decline doesn’t stop there. In 10 games for Denver last year, Dobbins averaged 5.0 yards per carry.
He’s not yet 28, but the wear and tear from injuries has followed him for most of his career, and the lower-body issues seem to be taking a toll now. He doesn’t look as explosive through contact or as fast hitting the hole, and that’s part of why it’s easy to imagine the Broncos leaning harder on rookie Jonah Coleman and RJ Harvey when Coleman returns.
If Dobbins keeps handling the bulk of the work, it’s going to keep dragging down the offense.
Ben Powers has also fallen short. His PFF numbers are rough: a 52.8 overall grade, which ranks 55th out of 76 qualified guards, and a 38.4 pass-blocking grade, good for 70th of 76.
The tape has backed that up, too. He had a tough outing against the Seattle Seahawks defensive line in Week 6, and the run game hasn’t found much success behind him.
When Powers has to pull, the play often looks messy, and he doesn’t always get his hands on defenders. That kind of season explains why Denver brought him back on an adjusted deal, because he’s clearly trending the wrong way.
With Alex Palczewski and Kage Casey in the mix, it wouldn’t be surprising if one of them eventually takes over that spot in 2027 and beyond.
Courtland Sutton rounds out the group, and his line tells the story: 13 catches for 123 yards. After back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2024 and 2025, he’s now on pace for 349 yards this year.
Per Pro Football Reference, Sutton has a 31.4 passer rating when targeted and already has three drops. His drop rate sits at 10.7 percent, a jump from 6.5 and 6.7 percent in the previous two seasons.
Sutton just turned 31, and the age curve may be starting to show. He has never been a clean separator, and drops have been part of his profile before.
But this season has looked worse, with the possibility that more than one part of his game is slipping at once. He’s tracking toward the worst year of his career, and even if 2024 and 2025 weren’t flashy, he still gave Nix a dependable late-down target.
That role can still matter for Denver, but Sutton has to play better for it to matter the way it should.
In Other News...
Bo Nix Is Keeping Denver Alive But One Concern Isnt Going Away
Bo Nix has been part of the reason Denver has stayed in the conversation, even if his game has not always looked smooth from week to week. In a division that keeps putting quarterback play under the microscope, the rookie has helped the Broncos land key wins while also leaving enough uneven moments to keep the discussion going around his development.
The latest AFC West quarterback rankings still put Patrick Mahomes at the top, with Kirk Cousins ahead of Nix and Justin Herbert behind him. That middle spot reflects the bigger picture on Nix: enough good stretches to keep Denver competitive, enough questions left to make every start feel like part of a longer evaluation. For the Broncos, the encouraging part is that the season is still alive. The less comfortable part is that the concern around Nix has not gone away. [Read more 🡒]
Bo Nix Debate Isnt Going Away After Broncos Win Over Seattle
The Broncos 17-14 overtime win over Seattle on Thursday night did not exactly calm the conversation around Bo Nix. Denver got the result it wanted in Week 6, but the performance left plenty of room for scrutiny, especially with the game airing in prime time on Amazon and drawing a big national audience.
Those eyeballs only sharpened the focus on Nix, whose play drew criticism even in a victory that kept Denver moving forward. The debate around the rookie quarterback was already simmering, and a tight, uneven game against the Seahawks did little to make it go away. [Read more 🡒]
Former Broncos Defender Helped Stop A Frightening Titans Incident
Training-camp friction can flare quickly, but what happened at the Titans facility landed well beyond the usual practice scuffle. Defensive tackle Jordan Elliott and offensive tackle JC Latham got into an argument, Elliott was told to leave the field, and the situation soon turned far more serious in a way that had everyone around the team on edge.
Former Broncos defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers stepped in before things spiraled further, helping calm Elliott and de-escalate a frightening scene. Elliott has since been released by the Titans, but the incident serves as a reminder of how quickly a routine camp dispute can turn into something much more alarming. [Read more 🡒]