Winners and losers from the Broncos 28-3 victory over the Bengals

It feels good to open this up and start writing after a victory, rather than after a heartbreaking last-second loss in a game they should have won.

The Broncos dominated this game from start to finish on both sides of the ball and came away with a convincing 28-3 victory over the Bengals. Now, it wasn’t error-free, and we’ll touch on some of those in this, but there is plenty of positive to write about, thankfully. So, with all that said, here are your winners and losers from the Broncos’ victory over the Bengals.

WINNER – Bo Nix

Bo Nix bounced back in a big way tonight and had 326 yards passing and 3 total touchdowns. However, his night could have been even better if he had not thrown an end zone interception, and Troy Franklin could have hauled in two passes from the second-year quarterback.

After receiving some criticism for his performance last week vs. the Chargers, Nix looked poised, was accurate, and led the Broncos’ offense up and down the field vs. this Bengals defense. This isn’t the best defense in the league, but he took care of business against a team they should have beaten and silenced some critics for at least this week.

WINNER – RJ Harvey and JK Dobbins

This was a great night for the Broncos’ backfield. Veteran J.K. Dobbins topped 100 yards on the ground, while rookie R.J. Harvey had 98 total yards from scrimmage, along with getting his first career NFL touchdown. This is exactly what Sean Payton envisioned from these two, and they put it all together tonight vs. the Bengals.

Dobbins looked patient, explosive, and averaged 6.3 yards per carry on the ground tonight. The Bengals couldn’t stop him, and it was a performance we haven’t seen in quite a while from a Broncos running back. This 100-yard performance was the first from a Broncos running back during the Sean Payton era. Meanwhile, Harvey had a strong showing as well. He had 58 yards rushing while adding 40 yards receiving and catching his first career touchdown pass.

Hopefully, we see more performances like this from these Broncos backs moving forward. The offense is at its best when it can run the ball.

WINNER – Courtland Sutton

Courtland Sutton is as reliable as they come. You need a first down? He’ll get you that. You need a big play? He can do that. You need a touchdown? He can do that too.

Nix targeted Sutton early and often in this game, and he delivered on multiple third downs, including an impressive touchdown catch before halftime. He finished the game with 5 receptions for 81 yards and 1 touchdown reception.

Since Sean Payton has taken over this team, Sutton has totaled 21 touchdown receptions and has 3 of them through the Broncos’ first 4 games this season. Could he be on the verge of a career year for the Broncos?

WINNER – Pat Surtain II and Riley Moss

The Bengals have Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and we saw both of these wide receivers abuse the Broncos during their matchup against them last season. However, that was not the case tonight as the Broncos’ star cornerbacks shut down the Bengals’ explosive pass catchers.

Things started rough for Riley Moss, and he had Broncos Country nervous after Tee Higgins beat him down the field for a big gain on the Bengals’ first drive. However, after that play, Higgins was non-existent throughout the rest of the game and finished the night with 3 receptions for 32 yards. Meanwhile, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year held Ja’Marr Chase to 5 receptions for 23 yards.

Absolutely dominated. (Jake Browning is also REALLY bad).

WINNER – Nik Bonitto and Jonathon Cooper

The Broncos’ pass rush was all over Bengals quarterback Jake Browning tonight, and both Nik Bonitto and Jonathon Cooper dominated. Both had multiple pressures and QB hits throughout the game, while Bonitto had 1.5 sacks and Cooper had 0.5 sacks.

I thought Cooper had more than that, but both dominated, and on one play, they both blew by the Bengals’ offensive tackles and met at the quarterback for the sack.

LOSER – Luke Wattenberg

When you get called for 5 penalties in one game, you’re making the loser list no matter the outcome. Unfortunately, Broncos center Luke Wattenberg did just that tonight.

Only three of the penalties were accepted, but it is still a rough showing from the Broncos center. Head Coach Sean Payton has said he wants to cut down on costly penalties, so performances like this will quickly put you in the coach’s dog house. On top of that, he is viewed as the weak link on the offensive line and had a few missed blocks tonight.

LOSER – Troy Franklin

Franklin had 4 receptions for 55 yards tonight and made some nice plays. However, his night could have been MUCH better. Early in the game, he dropped a beautiful pass from quarterback Bo Nix. Nix was on the move and avoiding the rush, and threw a dime to Franklin, who couldn’t bring it in.

Later in the game, Franklin got open deep, and Nix threw a very catchable ball to him for it to fall right between his hands. This would have been a 40+ yard reception and one that would have greatly changed the stat line for both players, but he couldn’t bring it in.

This was an issue for him last year, but he seemed to put it behind him. Unfortunately, we saw it pop up again tonight, so hopefully, this doesn’t become a trend for the Broncos’ explosive receiver.

Other notable Winners and Losers

WINNER – Broncos defense: The Broncos defense, as a whole, limited the Bengals to just 159 total yards and just 9 first downs in this game. Jake Browning and the Bengals are bad, but the Broncos’ defense took care of business tonight

WINNER – WR/KR Marvin Mims Jr.: Mims had 69 yards receiving while also adding 16 yards and 1 touchdown on the ground for the Broncos. He was a weapon as a receiver, ball carrier, and return man during this game.

WINNER – Broncos pass blocking: 0 sacks allowed

WINNER – IDL John Franklin-Myers: Multiple QB pressures and 1 sack

WINNER – WR Pat Bryant: Had a nice block on the Marvin Mims touchdown run

LOSER – Penalties: Had 7 penalties for 72 yards in this one. The Bengals had more, which took the spotlight off the Broncos, but miscues continue to be an issue for them.