Broncos Power Rankings Around the Web: Week 6

With the Broncos coming off of their Week 5 Bye, there’s not much action for the team in the various power rankings. A few sites moved the Broncos down for whatever reason, and occasionally they bumped up a spot due to the Steelers getting rolled over by the Jaguars.

Here are your Week 6 Broncos power rankings from around the web:

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Mile High Report:

2. Denver Broncos

Last Week: 2 (0)

Bye Week. Whenever possible, teams on their Byes will not move more than a spot or two.

The Chiefs won, so the Broncos don’t budge. Next up? A home game versus the Giants, who are sporting an 0 and 5 record, and a 1 of 5 count of available, uninjured wide receivers. And Eli Manning, who is already dealing with a neck injury and a terrible offensive line, stands squarely atop the pile of people who’d rather not meet Von Miller this week.

SB Nation:

Hope Rankings, Week 6

11. Broncos

Per usual: Note that these are “hope” rankings based on the outcome of the most recent game, not power rankings and certainly not standings.

Bleacher Report:

2. Denver Broncos

Last Week's Ranking: 3

Watch out for the Broncos. They have a Super Bowl defense, they have some weapons at receiver and they have a quarterback in Trevor Siemian who is more than capable.

The Broncos also have an offensive line and a running game this year. If Siemian can avoid mistakes and continue to gain experience, Denver can be a legit Super Bowl contender.

With winnable games against the Giants and Chargers upcoming, the Broncos could be fighting for first place in the AFC West when the team travels to Kansas City in three weeks.

ESPN:

7. Denver Broncos

2017 record: 3-1

Week 5 ranking: No. 4

57.7 percent chance. Denver's defense is the most efficient unit in the NFL, according to FPI, making up for any deficiencies from their 21st-ranked offense. The Broncos' next two games are against the Giants and Chargers, so their chances of making the playoffs could be on the rise.

The analysis is fairly spoken. That said, the 3 spot drop during a Bye week is setting off the BS alarm. The Patriots’ and Panthers’ wins were not dominant enough to justify moving them past Denver.

Yahoo Sports:

6. Denver Broncos (3-1, LW: 5)

The Broncos get the woebegone Giants at home this week. It gets harder after that: The Broncos have five road games in seven weeks, and the two home games are against the Patriots and Bengals. The schedule doesn’t let up.

USA Today:

9. Denver Broncos (Previous: 6)

With upcoming Sunday nighter against depleted and demoralized Giants, Denver players may find their bye week was more strenuous.

Again, a 3 spot drop after a Bye is a bit stupid in the top 10. It’s a pet peeve of mine, but still. You don’t diss good teams like that simply because they didn’t play that week. And it happened mostly because good-but-not-dominant wins like the Panthers, Patriots, and Seahawks got rewarded way too heavily.

NFL.com:

7. 3-1 BRONCOS

It was a bye week for the Broncos. Call it an opportunity for the coaching staff to get the passing game going again, as Trevor Siemian had slowed down after a torrid start to the season. The ground game picked up much of the slack in a Week 4 win over the Raiders, and Siemian surely doesn't need to air it out a la 2013 Peyton Manning. But against the Giants' defensive line this coming Sunday night, the running lanes might be a bit narrower. Then again, the G-Men kind of suck right now.

Sports Illustrated/MMQB:

6. Denver Broncos (3-1)

Last Week’s Rank: 6

Points in MMQB Power Poll: 451

Highest-Place Vote: Third

Lowest-Place Vote: Ninth

Last Week’s Result: bye week

Week 6 Opponent: vs. N.Y. Giants

Washington Post:

4. Denver Broncos (3-1) | Last Week’s Rank: 4

The Broncos return from the bye with a favorable matchup Sunday night against the Giants, who are winless and basically out of wide receivers. If they can beat the Giants and then the one-win Chargers, the Broncos would take a 5-1 record into an Oct. 30 showdown with the Chiefs in Kansas City on “Monday Night Football.”

Kudos, dude. I’d fully expected our knee-twitchyest ranker to drop the Broncos at least 5 or 6 spots after the Bye because reasons. Instead, he was actually more reasonable than several other rankers for once.

CBS Sports:

5. Broncos (No Change)

Coming off their bye, they face a Giants team that is depleted by injuries. They have to be careful of letting down.

FiveThirtyEight:

5th

The Broncos’ ELO Rating predictably held steady at 1578, but they did move up from 6th to 5th overall due to the Steelers plummeting past after collapsing against Jacksonville. The Broncos’ playoffs, division champion, first round bye, and Super Bowl odds all fell slightly, presumably in response to Kansas City’s win over the Texans.

NumberFire:

#3 Denver Broncos

The Broncos’ nERD dropped .80, for reasons unknown. They remain at #3, though, even though the faces have changed at #2. Perhaps there actually was an error in the Patriots’ rating last week, as their nERD plummeted and dropped them back to 5th. Meanwhile, the Jaguars’ dominant performance against the Steelers vaulted them into the #2 spot by this metric.

DenverBroncos.com:

2. DENVER (3-1)

Last week: 2

The Broncos lead the league in net yards allowed per possession, total yards allowed per game and first downs allowed on a per-possession and per-game basis.

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This week the Broncos get to get back in the groove at home, hosting the New York Injured Reserves... err, Giants. Given the devastated state of the offensive side of the Giants’ roster, and the middling performance of their defense, it should be a win for the good guys. Hopefully everyone comes out of it healthy and warmed up for greater challenges approaching as the Broncos will then enter a three game, coast-to-coast road swing.

Though it bears mentioning that should the Broncos blow this week’s game off and end up losing, they’ll plummet down the power rankings and deservedly so. Head Coach Vance Joseph needs to have the team hungry for victory, regardless of the opponent, after falling into a trap game earlier in the season in Buffalo.