No Bull thoughts on the Denver Broncos Week 1 matchup

The hopes and dreams of the NFL offseason are about to go the way of the dinosaur for Broncos Country and Raider Nation.

This weekend we kick off the season with the two basement dwellers of the AFC West circa 2022 and see which team is going to be one step closer to getting out of said basement and back into NFL relevancy.

With both teams, there’s been so much overhaul that it is hard to base any kind of prediction on the past. The core of both teams is still made up of the same players from last season so it is at least worth mentioning. Last season’s Broncos had a terrible offense and a solid defense. The Las Vegas Raiders had the reverse with a decent offense (largely due to a solid running game led by “Broncos Killer” Josh Jacobs) and a poor defense.

The Raiders have been busy revamping their defense and completely swapping out their starting QB from Derek Carr and Darren Waller to Jimmy Garoppolo and the mighty Austin Hooper(?). While I do think their defense should be improved, I think their offense is going to take a solid step back in its passing game. They lost more than they gained at QB and TE.

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With the Denver Broncos, the coaching change alone should help the offense take a much needed forward step (or two...not because of Sean Payton, but because of just how awful Nathaniel Hackett “coached” the offense). With the Broncos revamping their roster (especially up front on offense), they should be much more capable in scoring points.

With the Broncos defense, Broncos Country is hoping that Vance Joseph just steps in and keeps the ship sailing. I’m not necessarily sold on that, though and think our defense may take a small step back this season.

Things will likely be a bit ugly week 1. Look for some bad drives and turnovers by both teams. But I think Payton is the kind of coach who will scheme some big scores that will get the Broncos over the top.

Broncos 24 - Raiders 17

Broncos News

Mile High Morning: Former Broncos draft picks among Reese’s Senior Bowl 75th team finalists
Ring of Fame center Tom Nalen, inside linebacker Al Wilson, defensive end Elvis Dumervil, fullback Peyton Hillis, quarterback Tim Tebow and outside linebacker Von Miller were among the players the Broncos drafted to be nominated for the honor.

The revealing reason why Jaleel McLaughlin will wear jersey number 38 - Denver Sports
Jaleel McLaughlin didn’t choose the jersey number the Broncos gave him when he reported to the team in May. But he learned to love it.

ESPN report details Sean Payton's obsession with the details - Denver Sports
"Let's not lose track of the part about knowing how to win first," Sean Payton told his team, as reported by ESPN.

Other NFL News

Chiefs TE Travis Kelce believed to have avoided long-term knee injury; status in doubt for kickoff game vs. Lions
Kansas City Chiefs star tight end Travis Kelce suffered a hyperextended knee during Tuesday's practice, head coach Andy Reid told reporters.

NFL Power Rankings, Week 1: Steelers rising heading into 2023 season; Jets, Patriots fall before kickoff
With the 2023 NFL season set to kick off, Eric Edholm updates his Power Rankings. Who is on the rise heading into Week 1? Which teams are trending in the wrong direction?

2023 AFC win-total projections: Chiefs, Bengals, Bills reign; Dolphins, Steelers miss playoffs
Who will make the playoffs from the highly competitive AFC North? Will Aaron Rodgers lead the Jets to the postseason? Analytics guru Cynthia Frelund reveals her projected win total for each AFC team.

Tom Brady sees 'invigorated' Aaron Rodgers after trade to Jets: 'I think he's gonna have a great year'
Speaking on his "Let's Go!" podcast, retired quarterback Tom Brady says he sees an "invigorated" Aaron Rodgers after the trade to the New York Jets this past offseason.

Chandler Jones rips Raiders brass in since-deleted posts - ESPN
Raiders defensive end Chandler Jones indicated in since-deleted social media posts on Tuesday that he no longer wanted to play for coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler.

Florida legislator says Bears DT Gervon Dexter's NIL deal violated law - ESPN
An NIL deal signed in 2022 that gave Bears rookie Gervon Dexter more than $400,000 in exchange for 15% of his future earnings in the NFL violated a state law, according to a Florida state legislator.

Jerry Jones expects Dak to be with Cowboys for 'a long time' - ESPN
After agreeing to extensions with several key players, the Cowboys would still like to work on a deal with quarterback Dak Prescott. Addressing those talks, Jerry Jones said he expects Prescott to remain with the franchise for "a long time."

Strengths and weakness for every AFC team, even Chiefs, in 2023 - Sports Illustrated
The conference is full of star quarterbacks such as Joe Burrow, Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes, but each roster still has question marks for Week 1, too.