I have been reasonably content and without questions for several weeks but the current state of Jerry Jeudy’s play and discontent forces me to ask: What the heck? Is he really so upset at his perceived neglect at being targeted? When he is thrown the ball, his performance is often, quite lacking! That’s about as kind as I can be. How does it look from your professional perspective?

— A Referee, Greeley

The airing of grievances has re-commenced, eh, Ref? Kidding, kidding, thanks for writing in as always.

It’s turned into a bit of a funk with Jeudy, hasn’t it? Two of his three lowest production games by yards and targets have come in the past three weeks and in the other game — 51 yards against Houston — there were chances for so much more.

It’s not fair to put all of it on Jeudy. Against Houston in particular — as we detailed pretty extensively in a story Sunday — a bunch of different stuff all conspired against more big plays being made. Some of that is on him, some’s on Russell Wilson, some’s on the defense making good plays, pass protection and more. And, to Jeudy’s credit, he was able to see that and willing to acknowledge that during the week when I talked to him about it.

Against the Chargers, though, it did look like frustration set in. Either of the two deep balls could have been completed. Just one man’s opinion, but the first one didn’t look like a great throw from my seat and the second one was a tough chance, but I thought it got through the defensive back and on to Jeudy’s hands. The throw in the back corner of the end zone is the one you’ve got to have. It’s a four-point difference between getting a second foot down and not. Plain and simple.

Wilson last week insisted he has, “all the trust in the world in (Jeudy).” Quarterbacks tend to default to the guys they have that trust in when things go awry. Wilson always speaks highly of Jeudy in that regard but it’s also no secret that, this year, Wilson’s made the most hay getting the ball to Courtland Sutton in those situations and in the red zone. Sometimes it’s just the way the ball rolls, too. Sutton’s long touchdown against the Chargers was a play originally designed to go to Jeudy. Sometimes that’s the way it goes.

Jeudy’s really talented. His production hasn’t matched that talent. Even on a team that’s not putting up big passing numbers, he should be producing more. The simplest way I know how to say it is it’s on Wilson to get him the ball when he gets open and it’s on Jeudy to be able to stay the course mentally when that doesn’t happen.

It appears when Jaleel McLaughlin enters the game, the defense already knows he’s going to get the ball, since his ability to block is questioned. Any thoughts about using him in the slot or in the backfield with Javonte Williams and/or Samaje Perine?

— Curtis Hanlen, Bosque Farms, N.M.

Hey Curtis, it’s a good point and something we’ve mentioned previously. There was a stretch where the ball was going to McLaughlin — either a carry or a target in the passing game — more than 70% of the snaps he was on the field. That rate has come down but is still high – most recently 7 carries/targets in 13 snaps against the Chargers.

It’s kind of where they’re at offensively at this point. Williams is the go-to guy on early downs and Perine is the trusted pass-protector and pass-catcher on third down (and, when healthy, provides nice punch in the run game). That leaves McLaughlin to handle a handful of snaps a game, usually in situations where they can avoid leaving him in pass protection.

The conundrum: In order to use McLaughlin less, the Broncos would have to play him more. One of the many quirks that makes football great.

Hello Parker, this may not be a popular opinion, but Russell Wilson should be benched if the Broncos hope to make the playoffs. He is a liability on a team with little margin for error. Would it be the same if this were another player making so many mistakes, e.g., running into sacks, missing wide open receivers, not seeing open receivers? Why is he still on the field? Is Sean Payton making a case for waiving him next year? Because the evidence is piling up. Thanks!

— Joe C., Aurora

Hey Joe, Wilson isn’t perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but that’s not happening. And not just because he makes a lot of money and all that. There’s just no reason to think anything other than he gives the Broncos the best chance to win at this point.

It’s interesting: Wilson at this stage of his career misses on stuff that most quarterbacks don’t miss on. But he also still makes a handful of plays per game that most other quarterbacks don’t make. It sometimes leads to performances that aren’t the cleanest or the prettiest to watch, but recently it’s also led to a whole bunch of wins.

We’ve written extensively about the way his contract works, the decisions ahead, the imperfections in his game and all of that. But the caveat has always been and will continue to be that if you win, that stuff matters less. Right now, they’re winning. So you plow ahead trying to make the postseason and worrying less about what it looks like en route. If they falter down the stretch here and fall out of playoff contention, maybe Jarrett Stidham gets a game at the end of the year. But that situation or injury is the only way it’s happening over the next four weeks.

Parker, our win over the Chargers was easily the most dominant I’ve seen our team since Sean Payton became coach. What’s changed since our slow start? We were on the cusp of the season fading into a top-three pick, but now we’re a game away from the AFC West lead.

— Ryan, Castle Rock

Yo Ryan, thanks for the note. It’s a lot of things, but let’s put it as simply as possible:

1. The defense went from one of the worst starts in NFL history to being one of the stingiest groups in the league. Obviously a combination of things at play, but they’ve made a bunch of personnel moves that have paid off – jettisoning Randy Gregory and Frank Clark, giving Ja’Quan McMillian the nickel spot, starting Fabian Moreau, getting P.J. Locke and Baron Browning healthy, etc. — and defensive coordinator Vance Joseph has adjusted on the fly.

2. The offense settled into, for the most part, leaning on what it does best. Run the ball, play-action off of it and protect the football. You see what happens when they get away from that, but also how it’s a recipe for success. Then when the game’s on the line, they’ve found ways to get the job done more often than not.

Agree with you that Sunday was pretty convincing. They missed on a few chances and let the Chargers hang around for a while, but overall it felt like they were in control pretty much from the time the defense got that early red zone stand after Wilson’s first-play interception.

Hey Parker, last month I asked you who’s making the Pro Bowl on how we’ve played so far. Who do you have going now? I’m changing my answers to Courtland Sutton (he’s second in the league with 10 touchdown catches), Ja’Quan McMillian (he just makes plays) and Quinn Meinerz (he’s having a breakout year).

— Nick Winters, Colorado Springs

Yeah Nick, the Broncos certainly have more candidates than last time we did this exercise. I agree with your three and would think cornerback Pat Surtain II and safety Justin Simmons would also be good bets.

Good on you for coming around to my suggestion from a month ago about Meinerz. He’s really played well.

And it’s hard to say enough good things about McMillian, who could go from practice squad rookie to Pro Bowler. He’s already set the Broncos’ single-season record for tackles for loss by a cornerback (though nickel and corner aren’t exactly the same thing) with seven.

According to the Broncos, he’s also one of just two players in the NFL this year with multiple sacks, interceptions, forced fumbles and fumble recoveries. That’ll work.

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I personally am so happy for Russell Wilson after all the doubt he has received over the past year and a half. Do you think the Broncos keeping everything together and having success, despite the calls to tear it all down at 1-5, will influence other NFL teams in similar situations in the future to keep it all together as well?

— Augustus Oswald, Miles City, Mont.

Hey Augustus, thanks for writing in from Roosevelt territory to get us started. Spent a little time in Miles City back in the Montana days. Good eats and plenty of hydration options at Black Iron, if I remember correctly.

Great question, too. Certainly, general manager George Paton and head coach Sean Payton look wise at this point for standing pat at the trade deadline. Was it done entirely out of conviction about this group? Eh, not entirely. They listened, they just didn’t get the price they wanted on their players. Though it’s also fair if part of the reason they held prices at a certain level is because they felt like they at least had a chance to bounce back with the group as constructed.

Whether it has an impact on other teams in the future is another matter. One of the unique parts about Denver’s situation going into the trade deadline was that most of the players they fielded calls on have team control beyond this year. Inside linebacker Josey Jewell and center Lloyd Cushenberry are free agents after this year, but Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, Justin Simmons, D.J. Jones and Garett Bolles all have contracts through at least 2024. Part of the calculus to holding at the deadline is that a trade of any of those players or others can be revisited between the end of the season and the draft in late April next spring. That’s not going to be the case, necessarily, for other teams that end up in similar positions at future trade deadlines.

Another interesting wrinkle: Payton said in the lead-up to the deadline that they feel pretty good about their vision for the 2024 roster. Could this current run and/or a potential playoff push change the way they feel about a guy or two long term? Does Simmons look like an aging player at this point or somebody you’d think about giving a third contract? Bolles has a big cap number next year, but he continues to look healthier and healthier. Ditto for Sutton. So on and so forth. Interesting decisions all around coming this winter — and that’s before the conversation about Wilson himself. But, hey, the beauty of a five-game winning streak and meaningful December football is all that stuff can wait.

I was surprised by the many people who expected (hoped?) that Kareem Jackson would not be (or should not have been) suspended for his hit on Josh Dobbs. Jackson knew what the rules said, and he had to realize that the league would be scrutinizing his every play closely as he returned from his suspension. Yet, he still hit Dobbs high with helmet-to-helmet contact. Did he expect a different result from doing the exact same thing (insert the definition of insanity here) without considering the possible detrimental effect to the team? Why do fans not realize that this was the most likely result?

— Shawn Thompson, Denver

Yeah, Shawn, I’m with you pretty much across the board here. From the time the broadcast showed a replay of Jackson’s hit on Dobbs, it was clear he was playing on borrowed time before another suspension. Anybody expressing surprise is either acting or has their head buried in the sand.

The thing we don’t know — and won’t unless Jackson wants to talk in depth about it upon his return — is whether the fact that it took three plays after returning from suspension is indicative of obstinance, bad habit or something else. I believe his teammates when they insist it wasn’t out of malice, but obviously that didn’t mean much in terms of the punishment levied by the league.

OK, we’ve won five in a row and every week we look a little stronger. I have a couple of questions: 1. Jerry Jeudy barely got his number called against the Browns. Do you think he’ll be more involved next week or will Russell Wilson just keep doing short passes to the running backs or the occasional deep toss to Courtland Sutton? And 2. The Broncos allowed like five yards a carry against the Browns. Do you think Houston will come out with a run-heavy offense early? It seems like that’s been our issue all year, but not too many teams have been trying to run hard against us lately.

— Mike, Denver

Good questions, Mike, and keen observations. Jeudy’s been steady but hasn’t put up big numbers over the course of this winning streak. Two catches on three targets for 11 yards Sunday was his lowest output of the season. No Broncos receiver has put up big yardage numbers this year — Sutton’s got the touchdown machine rolling, though — so it’s hard to say when Jeudy or anybody else is going to truly go off. If you’re throwing darts, this would be a good week for it, though. Houston’s allowed the sixth-most passing yards in the NFL this year (252 per game) and is stingier against the run (ninth at 95.1 yards per game allowed). Still, I wouldn’t expect Payton and company to get too far away from what’s been working for them in recent weeks.

Here’s a good time to point this out: One element of Denver’s recent surge that’s gone perhaps under-appreciated is the quality of defenses they’ve faced in recent weeks. By EPA/play, Cleveland is No. 1, Kansas City is No. 5, Minnesota is No. 11 and Buffalo is No. 13. Meanwhile, their next three are on the road and certainly none is a walk in the park, though defensively Houston is No. 21, the Chargers are No. 27 (yuck) and Detroit is No. 15.

As for Houston, it wouldn’t surprise me if they tried to establish the run. Minnesota didn’t have much of a ground game but ran wild over the Broncos. One key difference: The Vikings were playing a quarterback who’d been with the team for two weeks and the Texans have an MVP candidate in C.J. Stroud. So sure, they may try to run it more than usual, but you can bet head coach DeMeco Ryans and offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik will put the game in the hands of their young, budding star quarterback.

P.J. Locke looked like he was everywhere Sunday. Is he the starter for the rest of the year as long as he’s healthy or will he split time with Kareem Jackson when he’s back from his suspension? And do you think we can catch the Chiefs for the division lead?

Love your coverage.

— Marshall, Parker

Thanks for the kind words and the questions, Marshall. Locke’s played well every time he’s been on the field this year and played his best game Sunday against the Browns. When he first came off of injured reserve, the staff clearly had Jackson in front of him as he worked mostly in spot duty.

I was interested to see how they’d handle the playing time when Jackson returned from his suspension, but Locke hurt his ankle and didn’t play against Minnesota. Now Jackson’s suspended again. If Locke continues to play well and Denver keeps winning, it’s going to be tough to take him off the field when Jackson’s suspension ends before that Christmas Eve game against New England. Maybe they’ll feel like they can get Locke a little bit of rest or maybe they’ll run into more injury issues, but there’s a long way to go still before they’re accounting for working Jackson back into the mix.

As to your other question, there was a moment Sunday when Denver was leading 14-0 and Kansas City was trailing by the same margin and that thought popped up as a conversation on press row for a fleeting moment. But then all of a sudden Patrick Mahomes and company had 31 on the board and stormed past Las Vegas. It may not be a vintage Mahomes offense, but that defense is real and they know how to win. Plus, Buffalo’s the only team left on their schedule that’s even at .500. Not only are they overwhelming favorites to win the West, but they’re right in the mix for the No. 1 seed. Same as it ever was.

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Hey Parker, that was one of the wildest endings to a game I’ve ever seen. It feels strange to be on this end of one after the last few seasons. My question is in regard to the Broncos’ inability to capitalize on offense. We spent a lot of time chastising Vance Joseph earlier in the season (and with good reason), but it seems like Sean Payton and Joe Lombardi have gotten off scot-free with the offense. The defense gave us so many opportunities, but we only found the end zone twice. That should’ve been a lopsided victory if we could only get the ball moving. What do you think?

— Wallace G., Brighton

Yo Wallace, thanks for writing in and getting us going. It was indeed a wild ending to Monday night’s win at Buffalo. And you’re spot on about the Broncos’ inability to capitalize. Payton even mentioned it after the game, saying he kept looking at the scoreboard and thinking they should have been leading by much more — or leading at all late in the game — when they were plus-three in the turnover department.

Don’t fully agree that they’re getting off without any criticism. It’s been there, but winning three straight obviously softens the blow some. The reality in recent weeks has been that the defense and special teams have picked up the offense more than the other way around. Of course, it’s all good if you’re winning games. If Buffalo had 11 guys on the field when Wil Lutz’s first attempt at a game-winner slid right, the immediate questions would have been about that sequence. But very quickly attention would have shifted to scoring just six points off four Bills turnovers. One thing that’s clear: Denver’s offense has to do a better job of making those situations count, because even if the defense keeps playing well, it’s not going to generate four takeaways every week.

A couple of key numbers for the Broncos offense: By Sumer Sports’ EPA/play, the group is No. 16 overall. They’re tied for 15th in scoring (21.8 per game), tied for 14th in yards per play (5.2) and No. 23 in yards per game (301.9). They’re tied for fifth in yards per carry (4.6), but not quite as good on a per-game basis (12th at 117.3). Russell Wilson’s done a good job not turning the ball over and has a terrific 18-to-4 touchdown-to-interception mark, but the Broncos are No. 20 in turnover rate, No. 28 in passing yards per game (184.6) and aren’t particularly good at generating first downs (No. 23).

Regardless of how you slice it, there’s plenty of room for the offense to improve.

Where’s Marvin Mims been in the offense? He looked like he was gonna be a deep target for us after the first few weeks. But he’s disappeared. Four touches on offense in the last five games. Is he in the dog house or is Sean Payton just relying on him purely as a returner now?

— Mike, Denver

Yeah, Mike, Mims’ offensive usage has been tough to figure this year. He got off to such a hot start, but defenses quickly learned they had to account for him down the field. Over the past five games, he’s got two catches for four yards (four targets) and two carries for minus-14.

He’s not in the dog house, though. He’s already become one of the best return men in the game.  Not only that, but here’s an interesting number to watch going forward: Mims against Buffalo was on the field for a career-high 52 snaps, or 69% of Denver’s offensive plays. He hadn’t played more than 28% or 39% (both Week 8 vs. Kansas City) previously. Not only that, but 52 against Buffalo slotted him slightly ahead of Jerry Jeudy (49) and behind only Courtland Sutton (65) among receivers. We didn’t see a ton of big role changes for the Broncos coming out of their bye week, but one key clearly was to get Mims on the field as if he’s one of Denver’s top receivers.

Now moving forward the question will be about whether the production rises with the playing time. The bet here is yes.

Ja’Quan McMillian’s got that dawg in him! Loving how this D is finally coming together. Getting rid of Randy Gregory, demoting Damarri Mathis and losing Kareem Jackson gave us that boost. Do you think when Kareem returns he’ll mess with the chemistry?

— Ty W., Thornton

Hey Ty, thanks for writing in! Totally agree with you on the first two, but I’m not sure that losing Jackson for two games fits in with the other two moves you listed. Releasing Frank Clark? Sure. But Jackson’s absence hasn’t been a big plus. Now, he’s got to avoid the same kind of costly penalties he racked up, but the Broncos will benefit from having his knowledge and veteran presence back in the locker room, too. Really, it’s a testament to P.J. Locke’s ability that he stepped in and played starting-quality football against Kansas City and Buffalo while Jackson was out.

There’s another reason Jackson’s return might actually be really important: Locke missed the final 34 snaps against the Bills because of a left ankle injury. We’ll know more about his status as the week goes along, but the Broncos would certainly benefit from having Jackson back if Locke misses any time. What will be interesting is how the snaps shake out if and when Locke and Jackson are both available. Here’s what Payton said about that on Tuesday: “We’ll sort through how we’re going to implement Kareem in the plan. Certainly we view him as a starter, veteran player. He’s smart. He’s extremely smart.”

OK, Parker, half the season’s over: Who’s making the Pro Bowl based on how we’ve played so far? For me, it’s Russell Wilson (his numbers are among the league’s leaders), Justin Simmons and Alex Singleton (they’ve been everywhere on defense). What say you?

— Nick Winters, Colorado Springs

Good way to finish it off this week, Nick. Pro Bowl nods always tilt toward teams that win games, so let’s start by saying the number of Broncos who get picked will be higher if they keep winning the rest of the way.

Wilson’s certainly bounced back this year, but the AFC quarterback field is loaded. Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Tua Tagovailoa and rookie C.J. Stroud are all having terrific seasons and there’s still time for Justin Herbert or Josh Allen to get hot, too. Not to say Wilson can’t or won’t make it, but it won’t be easy.

Pat Surtain II should be a lock even though his numbers may not jump off the page. Simmons is a good bet. Singleton means a lot to the Broncos defense, though at eighth in the AFC in total tackles (10th in solo) and with three tackles for loss and no sacks, will he generate widespread recognition? Again, how Denver plays down the stretch determines a lot of that. Six weeks ago you could not have convinced me that three players from this defense would be in consideration, so there’s a long way to go.

Here’s one other thought: This should be the year right guard Quinn Meinerz gets consideration. He’s playing like one of the best interior linemen in football.

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A few weeks ago the Broncos played with their new alternate helmets. While other teams just play on nostalgia with throwback gears, Denver mixed it up with something new (color white) and really made a gimmick out of it. … More so than just rocking alternates, it truly felt like a test. Can you tell me how it was received and do you hear anything about where they’re at with the new uniforms?

— Yoann, Beine-Nauroy (France)

Hey Yoann, thanks for writing in and getting us going this week. Back from the bye week and back into action.

Astute point that the helmet seemed like more than just a one-time thing. A test is a good way to put it. I’m not an expert on this stuff, but the reaction I saw to the helmet was pretty solidly positive in nature. And that’s before you grade on the scale of how flat so many attempts at this kind of thing go for teams across sports – think about the NBA’s In-Season Tournament uniforms in general or the City Connect jerseys in baseball. There’s a lot of negativity around a lot, though not all, of those attempts.

No updates recently from the Broncos on their alternate uniform pursuits, but we heard from president Damani Leech before the season and they’re clearly working through the process. Last year in London, he talked about a roughly two-year timeline. At present, Denver’s been working on the project for about 18 months. I’m not a math major, but that lines up for a potential offseason announcement regarding something for 2024.

Given that: 1) Russell Wilson is unlikely to return next year; 2) the Broncos will likely win themselves out of contention for Caleb Williams; 3) Sean Payton has had more success rehabbing QBs than drafting them… What do you think about the possibility of re-signing Drew Lock, who is playing out a 1-year deal with Seattle, then drafting a highly rated QB? I would give 2024 to Lock, as he’s had enough of rigged QB competitions. If he performs, keep the rookie QB in reserve. 

— Dan Murphy, Kansas City, Mo.

Hey Dan, good questions and interesting line of thought.

We’ve established over the past few weeks why, even if Wilson continues to play well overall through the second half of the season, there’s an action point coming with him sooner rather than later. His 2024 salary is already guaranteed but on March 17, $37 million for 2025 locks in, too, meaning the club owes him that cash and also it counts against their cap in the event they want to cut him at some point in the future.

For a moment, then, let’s consider the situation where Wilson is not back with Denver in 2024 while acknowledging that it’s far too early to know exactly where the Broncos will be come free agency or the draft. It’s shaping up to be an intriguing draft year even beyond the No. 1 pick or top couple in Williams and North Carolina’s Drake Maye. Will Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders declare for the draft? You’ll also have Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy, Washington’s Michael Penix, Jr., Oregon’s Bo Nix, LSU’s Jayden Daniels, Texas’ Quinn Ewers and Georgia’s Carson Beck all in the mix. They’re not all likely to go in the first round, mind you, but for the most part we’re talking about Day 1 or Day 2 guys depending on how they finish this year, the pre-draft process, testing, the Combine, health, etc. Our columnist, Mark Kiszla, wrote last week he thinks Denver needs to draft one regardless of if they pick No. 1 or much later in the first round. That deep group means the Broncos will have options.

Payton made an interesting comment ahead of Denver’s win against Green Bay about how the Packers were ahead of the curve back in the 1990s in the way they drafted quarterbacks “as a commodity” regardless of whether they ended up playing or getting traded.

“They were ahead of the curve all the way back to Ron Wolf and … the late Ted Thompson,” he said, nodding to two former top executives for the Packers. “That was pretty smart business with how important that position is.”

That stuck out to me, for obvious reasons, but also because he didn’t really operate that way in New Orleans. The Saints drafted just four quarterbacks in his time there: Seventh-rounder Sean Canfield (2010), third-rounder Garrett Grayson (2015), seventh-rounder Tommy Stevens (2020) and fourth-rounder Ian Book (2021). Book played in one game and is the only of the four to throw a pass in an NFL game.

Let’s not dismiss the free agency question out of hand, but Denver gave Jarrett Stidham $5 million guaranteed and up to $10 million on a two-year deal in March. If 2024 is indeed post-Wilson, what’s the reason (besides a top draft pick) to believe he wouldn’t get the first crack?

My question is with Russell Wilson. I have never been a huge fan of his and it is getting harder to be a fan. Yes, he threw for three touchdowns against the Chiefs, but he also held onto the ball WAY TOO LONG! It seems most great QBs have that clock in their head of when to throw it away or just scramble. It seems that Wilson’s clock is missing a gear or two. Is he thinking too hard in this new offensive scheme? Is he afraid of making mistakes? If he is just a game manager now? Why not just put Jarrett Stidham in there?

— Del, Lamar

Yo Del, thanks for writing in.

Yeah, it’s a fascinating conversation around Wilson because the counting stats look pretty good. He’s on pace for 34 touchdowns and nine interceptions with a quarterback rating of 101.7, which would be slightly above his career average in Seattle. Completion percentage? Up. But his yards per attempt and completion percentage are both down and his sack rate is currently at 10%. Last year was 10.7%, only the second time in his career he’s finished in double digits. That’s bad, even for a guy whose athleticism and ability to make plays outside the pocket has always led to elevated sack rates.

Payton did point out Monday that Wilson’s playing in his third offensive system in three years, but the ”thinking too much” reason gets less acceptable the further the season goes along. It becomes kind of a week-to-week tolerance quotient for fans and observers, which isn’t a good way to live. Wilson extended a play beautifully to throw the put-away touchdown to Courtland Sutton against Kansas City and he’s done similar several other times this year. Does that offset a six-sack game against Kansas City, seven against Washington in Week 2 and two other four-sack performances? Does his stellar 4-to-1 TD-to-INT ratio cancel out five fumbles (three lost)?

All of the “game manager” stuff and even the future beyond 2023 addressed above is almost immaterial at this moment (though the contract situation will loom until action is taken). Maybe some things Stidham would do as well or better than Wilson, but others almost certainly not. If the Broncos can get hot with Wilson playing fine, smart, efficient, spectacularly or average, all that will matter in the moment is that they got hot. If they can’t, then the questions only get louder late in the season.

According to Adam Schefter, Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis paid roughly $85 million to fire his head coach (Josh McDaniels) and general manager (Dave Ziegler) last week. Given that the Broncos ownership group has way more money than Davis, does that open up the possibility they would consider paying Sean Payton’s massive contract buyout were things to go south over next two months? Or is that just a case of the Raiders being the Raiders?

— Matt, Lincoln Park

The Walton-Penner Family Ownership Group can do whatever it wants financially. Point blank. Period. They could pay the buyout for Payton or remaining guarantee to Wilson or drop another $100 million in stadium renovations or announce a $175 million headquarters rebuild without thinking twice about it. They could decide to build a palatial stadium and not have to wonder about where the financing’s going to come from. It’s their single-biggest advantage over other clubs and how they attempt to leverage it is going to be fascinating to watch in the coming years.

But one franchise biting the bullet to buy out coaches and front office executives and start over (again) doesn’t open the door or change anything regarding another’s. Almost every arrow points to Payton getting a pretty good amount of runway here and the list of reasons is so long it’s almost silly to go through them all. This ownership group hired him. This franchise has only known instability for several years now. He’s won a Super Bowl (albeit quite a while ago). And do you really think the next move would be to go back to the head coaching well? All of that and more before even pointing out that it’s been eight games and Denver’s come around in recent weeks. Haven’t you heard? They’re getting molten hot in the second half of the season and making the playoffs! OK, even if that doesn’t actually happen, at the moment it looks more likely than a one-and-fired for Payton.

Bottom line is this: Denver’s ownership group will never get to use money as an excuse for making or not making a move. But that doesn’t mean they’re going to throw it around without purpose.

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The TV often focuses on the coaches calling plays and displays it on the screen. The Denver coaches let their play-calling be shown and I think the opposing team can partially know what they are talking about. I think the Denver coaches should try harder to hide their lips from the TV when calling plays.

— Nathan Berger, Denver

Hey Nathan, thanks for writing in and getting us started this week. I hear you on that, but I think this type of thing gets a little bit overblown. The detail with which you’d have to lipread and then put into practice in real time makes it seem unlikely to be successful.

For this to work, someone must be watching the moment a sideline shot captures something revelatory being said, then decode that message and use against a team seconds later. Isn’t it more likely that an opposing player would be along the sideline and hear or see something helpful? Or that, Michigan style, someone in the opposing coaches’ box is watching signals through binoculars?

He might have been bluffing a bit, but Payton said a couple weeks ago he wasn’t worried about his entire two-minute menu and terminology ending up on television plainly legible in Week 6. Monday on social media I saw Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen talking about how the Bills come up with line of scrimmage calls like “JR Smith” and it correlates to a concept called “Cavalier” (Get it? JR Smith played for the Cleveland Cavaliers). I also saw Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur describe in detail how a young receiver got fooled by the Vikings disguising a particular coverage based on the leverage the nickel played with. All of which is to say that coaches tend to be among the most paranoid people on the planet and if they’re not covering their mouth on the sideline, it’s probably because they have a pretty good idea it’s not the difference between winning and losing.

Parker, finally we went all in on the run game. That combination of Javonte Williams and Jaleel McLaughlin is dynamite. What the heck took so long? I swear, we’ve been harping on this for weeks.

— Mark, Arvada

How about that? More than anything, the confusion over the past few weeks stemmed from the fact that this is what Sean Payton and company talked about being the offense’s bedrock all along. Like, from the day he got hired. And through free agency. And the draft. And OTAs. And training camp. And the preseason. And then it just never really felt like the Broncos were all that committed to it until Sunday. Of course, there are some justifications for the lack of rushing attempts in the first several games.

I wrote about some of them last week, including the amount of time they’ve trailed compared to being ahead or tied this year. Even still, the Broncos did just enough in the passing game to help stay on schedule and allow for 40 rushing attempts against the Chiefs on Sunday. And yes, Williams and McLaughlin are a nice pairing. Don’t forget Samaje Perine, who’s the team’s third-leading receiver so far.

How about this stat: Russell Wilson ran the ball eight times and was sacked six against Kansas City. On Denver’s other combined 44 rush attempts and completions, running backs got the ball 39 times. Talk about leaning on a position group, right?

Hey Parker, love your coverage. After losing to the Dolphins, it felt like we could’ve easily fallen to 1-7 or 0-8 by the bye week. Now that we’re 3-5, how do you feel about this team in the second half? Do you think we can sneak into a playoff spot? If we stay healthy, there are definitely some winnable games ahead.

— Ryan D., Denver

Ryan, appreciate the kind words. It’s funny what a couple of wins can do for a team, right? Suddenly you go from looking down the schedule and saying “Oh yeah, they’re going 3-14” to saying, well, you can squint and see 10 wins.

The reality, of course, is not that simple. As you indicated in the question, Denver is pretty healthy right now outside of the group that got hurt in camp/right at the start of the season and the recurring hamstring issues for Greg Dulcich. If they hit another rough patch on that front, that can change the complexion of a game or two. Then there’s this stat that I looked up this morning for no particular reason: In two years so far of the expanded playoff field, 10 non-division winners have gone 9-8. Three of them have made the playoffs as Wild Card teams and seven have not. So really, to ensure a playoff bid, 10 wins is the benchmark.

Can they go 7-2 to basically ensure the make it or 6-3 to at least be in the picture? It’s not impossible. But as we learn anew every week in the NFL, there’s no such thing as a gimme game. Beat Buffalo and lose to Cleveland or beat Detroit and lose to Las Vegas, and the math gets tight quickly. It’s not just about an upset or two. It’s about playing really consistent football for two months. We haven’t seen that kind of consistency from this team this year or from the franchise in quite some time. But that doesn’t make it impossible.

This defense has made a complete 180-degree turn since the Miami game. What happened? We look like we did last year. Is Vance Joseph not as bad as we thought?

— Marvin, Salt Lake City

Yeah, Marvin, I’d quibble with the timeline a little bit. They allowed Justin Fields to start 23 of 24 for 285 yards in Week 4, so the turnaround didn’t really start right after Miami. Even in Week 5 the Jets ran for 234 yards, though the defense only gave up 22 of New York’s 31 points.

The larger point stands, though. The defense has played much better recently than it did early in the season. Here’s the interesting part about it: Sometimes fans (and reporters can fall into this, too) assume that players and coaches just always try to say the right thing regardless of what the truth is. But Broncos defensive players were adamant all along that Joseph wasn’t the problem. He had a good scheme and called good stuff and they didn’t execute. It didn’t seem like lip service at the time and it certainly doesn’t now. A couple of things Justin Simmons said last night stood out to me.

First, “I think VJ did such a good job today with the play calling and mixing it up. When we execute what he calls, this is kind of the result.”

Second, “I think it’s just, how do we fine-tune the details? Because that was what we were missing. I’m not just coming up here and, what I like to call it, ‘media talk’ — I’m not just coming up here and saying (it’s about) communication each and every week so it sounds good. That is really the No. 1 thing you work on.”

Also, though, it certainly doesn’t hurt that Simmons is back healthy and creating turnovers, Baron Browning is back now, too, Jewell is playing well, etc., etc. And they’re several weeks further now into playing Joseph’s defense, too.

A couple of questions for you. First, do you think Damarri Mathis has a future here after this season? He’s looked terrible this year. Fabian Moreau should’ve been the starter from Day 1. And what’s going to happen with Kareem Jackson when he comes back? I really like P.J. Locke out there. Kareem’s a hard hitter, but it seems like that’s a product of a bygone era.

— Marshall, Parker

Hey Marshall, thanks for writing in. Certainly Mathis can have a future with the Broncos after this year. He’s a second-year player who the Broncos were really high on. He got drafted in the fourth round for a reason. None of those things guarantee a player anything, but those factors combined with some promising tape from last year should get him at least another chance.

At the same time, you’re right that Moreau has helped calm the waters the past two weeks. And if the Broncos got the Riley Moss pick right — he hasn’t played yet, but he’s obviously just halfway through his rookie year — then there’s competition there, too. They gave up a third-round pick to move up and draft Moss. He’s going to get a shot at some point.

To your second question, it’ll be interesting to see how the Broncos grade out Locke’s performance Sunday against Kansas City and then in Week 10 against Buffalo before Jackson comes back. There’s always a chance they just decide to roll with Locke. He’s got some range, though he did miss a tackle on running back Isaiah Pacheco that ruptured into Kansas City’s longest rush of the day. Teams don’t typically like true rotations in the secondary among their starting guys, so it’ll be telling who’s back there next to Simmons in Week 11 against Minnesota.

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The $100 million improvements at Mile High are highlighted by the massive scoreboard reflecting what has been the glaring reality, witnessed by this season-ticket holder, through the first three home games. The amenity upgrades such as food courts and more are nice, but they seem to keep around 30% of the crowd away from their seats instead of turning up the volume when the Broncos defense cries out for a stop after halftime. I’m doubtful this is the same at Arrowhead. Is this a sign of the times, a new fanbase, or merely grasping at straws to come up with excuses for losing?

— Curt Hanlen, Bosque Farms, N.M.

Hey Curt, thanks for writing in and getting us started this week. The amenities are too nice and they’re hurting crowd noise is a novel argument! Even if you’re grasping at straws, points for creativity. But you’d think if the crowd noise was so subdued the Broncos offense would have managed more production than their heinous third quarters so far. So I think we’ve maybe got a bit of a hole in the theory. You’re certainly not wrong that teams are paying more attention than ever to fan experience.

If I ever become president of a team, though (watch out, Damani Leech) maybe I’ll pitch prison conditions for the fans to fuel maximum crowd rowdiness. The bathrooms are just troughs. The concession stands serve gurel and motor oil only. The bleachers — seat backs are for the bourgeois — have electrical current flowing through them. And it’s always 110 decibels or louder. Good luck, Raiders.

Does Broncos Country have a pill available to cure any or all of the following: Depression, anger, schizophrenia, alcoholism, catatonia, malaise, shattered hopes and TV screens? It has only taken five weeks, but I’m suffering from all of the above. Please provide a prescription, oh wise Dr. Gabriel.

— A Referee, Greeley

Tough stretch, eh Ref? Unfortunately I’m not a real doctor. I only play one in my newspaper mailbag. A win against the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium might cure many of those ills, but unfortunately that’s the rarest of antidotes. It hasn’t been seen around here in years.

Until then, a steady intake of puppies, fall colors, Vincent Neil Emerson and dry land training for ski season is about as good as you can do. Oh, and watch the 49ers. Those guys are incredible and, you know, they’ve got a Shanahan and a Lynch running the show.

I’ve got an hypothetical question, borderline unrealistic, but we never know. Russell Wilson has shown some promise overall, but facing a total rebuild we all know the main issue is his contract and we all know by now the cost of cutting him after the season. If they could find a team willing to take Wilson in a trade, how much money would still be on the Broncos’ books cap wise going forward? If that was the way, is there a savior out there now or after the season, or is the trust over Wilson’s capabilities broken league-wide?

— Yoann, Beine-Nauroy (France)

Yoann, a Russell Wilson trade is extremely unlikely given his contract. I guess you never say never because crazy stuff does happen in this league from time to time, but something would have to change. Most likely, he’d have to really want out and be willing to radically alter his deal to do so. Or he’d have to be playing well enough for a team to want him but not so well that the Broncos don’t see value in keeping him. And even then, given the cap situation, it might be a situation where the Broncos are adding picks to the trade to try to get a team to do it. All in all, there’s just not much likelihood in it. They’re more likely to just part ways with him at some point – though, again, it’s best for both parties if he plays well enough that even that conversation can be pushed into the future.

In this hypothetical where they did trade him, though, it’d be similar to what happened with Randy Gregory. The money might move around depending on how a deal gets structured, but essentially you end up with the same $85 million it would cost after the season (plus whatever money is left to be paid out of a player’s base for the rest of the season if it’s an in-season deal). You’ll notice on Gregory’s trade that even though the money shifted to about $7.7 million on the cap this year and $13.8 million next year, it still works out to the $22.4 million that originally made up his 2023 cap number ($16.1 million) and 2024 dead cap hit ($6.3 million) before he was traded.

There are all kinds of interesting scenarios to consider. Would they draft a quarterback and keep Wilson in 2024? Would they bypass a QB altogether if they’re in the top three or four (but let’s say not No. 1) if he plays well? Would they trade back and risk not taking a shot in what’s regarded as a deep quarterback class? There’s a lot of season left, but those are the kind of questions you start thinking about as the losses pile up.

Hey Parker, it seems this mess goes back to Pat Bowlen and those “gap years” of ownership upheaval. Not long after Pat was unable to continue, the Broncos have been in a free-fall. Our new owners have the best intentions but are inexperienced. I maintain that if Pat Bowlen were still around and healthy, we would not be in this situation. Your thoughts?

— Marilyn Kroner, Boulder

Hey Marilyn, thanks for writing in. I never covered the Bowlen regime, so I can’t say that I have a great feel. But one thing that’s clear is that the lack of continuity has hurt Denver maybe more than we give it credit for. Sean Payton likes players that are slightly different than the players Nathaniel Hackett liked that are slightly different than the players that Vic Fangio liked. That makes the job for somebody like general manager George Paton so difficult. They’ve retrained their scouts on what the coaching staff likes each of the past three years.

Consider that last year the Broncos took Luke Wattenberg and Delarrin Turner-Yell on Day 3 of the draft. This year, they took Alex Forsyth and JL Skinner. Guys that play the same positions. Not like you aren’t always keeping an eye out for DBs and offensive linemen, but Denver had precious few picks this past year and doubled up at spots they’d just drafted the year before anyway. That’s one small part of the lack of continuity that’s been the norm around here for many years now.

Hi Parker, when Russell Wilson fumbled and Sean Payton was chewing him out, it looked like Wilson wanted none of that. With that do you think the relationship between Wilson and Payton is strained to a point that Wilson needs to be traded or at least cut? I am not sure if Wilson will thrive in this offense and sometimes it seems like his heart is not in it anymore.

— Del, Lamar

I don’t think any of those things, actually, Del. Now, if the Broncos end up with a top-end draft pick, it’s entirely possible they take a quarterback. But I don’t think the relationship is strained and I don’t think Wilson has any issues in the care department. In fact, everybody you talk to who knows what’s going on says Wilson is thrilled to be playing for Payton. It’s been something he’s had his eye on for years. Yeah, he gets coached hard and yeah, Payton yells quite a bit, but that’s just part of the deal with him, basically.

None of that means that this is guaranteed to work or that Wilson won’t ultimately get replaced, whether it’s next spring or sometime in the next couple or handful of years. But a couple of competitors venting frustration 10 seconds after a game-deciding play isn’t the spot to take the full temperature of the relationship.

Hi Parker, great coverage as always. I had a couple of related questions: Given that Randy Gregory was traded and we Nolan Arenado-ed his salary, what are your thoughts on the competency of the ownership group? I have no doubt they’ll spend whatever it takes to win but are they competent spenders or are they like the New York Mets ownership (big spenders on a bunch of busts)? Second, how short of a leash is George Paton on and is he on the hot seat? Seems like he’s traded away a ton of draft capital to get Wilson and Payton, and spent a ton of money on the O-line and Gregory — and serious questions remain about all of those decisions. And does he have any say at all or is it Sean Payton’s team now, Will Lutz and all, but he may be the fall guy come offseason? Thanks!

— Joe, Denver

Joe, find a Mets fan to ask that question about competent spending. See what they say.

The Walton-Penner Family Ownership Group is still early, all things considered, in its NFL journey. They say they’re learning fast and they’ve seen a lot for having been on the job all of 14 months. Certainly there’s still a lot to learn, too.

It was interesting that CEO Greg Penner said that they don’t anticipate spending every year in free agency like they did this spring. That’s obviously not an affordability question for them, but it’s the data that says the best teams aren’t overly reliant long-term on free agency. You have to draft and develop and, of course, you have to have a quarterback.

Now, how stridently they stick to that philosophy and how much patience they can show after a couple of thin years and light draft hauls remains to be seen. It’s easy to say you’re going to do that. It’s hard to stick to it when you watch the team lose often in the meantime.

As for Paton, time will tell. He and Sean Payton seem to get along well and Payton’s seen the value of having a talented evaluator in the general manager role like he had for his entire New Orleans tenure in Mickey Loomis. But Paton’s the one who traded for Wilson and signed Gregory and brought in most of the guys on the roster besides this most recent free agency and draft class. The pair and their staffs have been collaborative, but there is little doubt that Payton has a big say in roster decisions. Remember, the way the organization is structured now, both men report directly to Penner.

Maybe it’s just me, but given that we can’t stop the run and our pass-rush is inconsistent at best, shouldn’t we be bringing in some free agents — at least to kick their tires?

And why did they stop feeding Jaleel McLaughlin in the second half? Our offense slowed to a crawl.

— Mike R., Aurora

For sure, Mike, and teams do that every week where they bring in players for visits or workouts. There just aren’t NFL difference-makers out there for the plucking this time of year, though. Every once in a blue moon a team might catch lightning in a bottle, but it’s so rare for a midseason workout guy to go from jobless to impact player.

And on McLaughlin, great question. Payton said he got impatient and relied too much on the passing game. The Broncos had 118 rushing yards late in the second quarter and barely scratched out 20 the rest of the way. Game management: Not ideal.

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After Sunday’s game, the focus will surely be on the special team and the analysis of another 16-point outing from the offense. But what about Vance Joseph? We got only two stops out of six drives, one in large part because of a dumb decision from Jimmy Garoppolo. We couldn’t get a single sack and had only three QB hits.

No three-and-outs, three drives of 10 or more plays (plus the six-play, 75-yard touchdown), unable to get a stop with over five minutes on the clock with two timeouts and the two-minute warning. Not saying there weren’t some positives (the run defense for example), but in the end this unit didn’t do enough to get the ball back to Russell Wilson, they couldn’t get key stops when needed, and didn’t make life difficult for Garoppolo, who’s not the scariest QB on the schedule. In your opinion, is it just a bad game, or a bad sign?

— Yoann, Beine-Nauroy, France

Where was our pass rush, Parker? We brought in Zach Allen and Frank Clark and it didn’t seem like they made all that much of a difference against Vegas.

— Mike, Denver

Combining these two entries and yeah, Yoann and Mike, there are some questions to answer about the defense.

The effort against the run and noted Broncos destroyer Josh Jacobs was solid, but the Raiders did too much damage on third and fourth downs and Denver couldn’t make Garoppolo uncomfortable at all. One of the realities of Week 1 is we’ll all look back a month from now and it’ll either look like a big flashing warning sign or an anomaly.

There are reasons for concern — though not for panic at this point — particularly in the pass-rush. Randy Gregory and Frank Clark combined for zero pressures. The Broncos had just three overall. And you just didn’t see one-on-one wins up front. As Sean Payton said Monday, the two ways to produce pressure are to beat your man or bring extra people. Obviously the former is preferred. But the Broncos just didn’t get much of that from its edge players or its interior linemen.

A consistent pass-rush is the best tool for getting off the field. You can stop the run on mixed downs, but if a quarterback then sits in the pocket with no heat, he’s going to find an answer more times than not. It’s not the only problem, but it’s definitely a part of the equation that can solve other problems. Pressure creates turnover opportunities. It’s a lot more difficult to pick on somebody in coverage if you have to worry about getting the ball out quickly.

So, let’s see if Joseph and the Broncos defense can create more against Washington.

What sense does it make for NFL teams to go to all the trouble of fielding a 53-player roster and 16-player practice squad, only to be allowed to dress 46 players plus two designates from the practice squad on game day? They’re saying it is economics or competitive fairness is ridiculous. The entire enterprise is costly and completely based on competition. Each team has exactly the same opportunity to build their rosters.

It makes absolutely no sense not to dress and potentially play any or all of the 69 players. Make it 70 and stop playing games juggling the roster on game day. The owners are loony for doing it the way they do.

Dress ’em and play ’em. There is nothing unfair about that. In fact, don’t you think it would improve the product?

— A Referee, Greeley

Hey Ref, good question.

The fairness explanation, typically, is that if you can dress all 53 players, then what happens when one team has six guys injured and the other only has one? Not sure if you’ve noticed, but NFL head coaches tend to be wound pretty tight and they’re not wild about going into a game with several less available players than the other team. So even if three of your top guys are hurt and three backups for the other team are hurt, at least under the current rules you’ll still both have 46 in uniform.

That’s the rationale. I tend to agree that it’s a little silly. Especially with big practice squads nowadays, maybe you could fill your gameday roster to 53 or 55 from your practice squad regardless of how many players are out. So if you’re fully healthy, great, you can bring two guys up. Have six players down for the week? Activate eight from the practice squad.

Of course, changes to those rules mean dealing with the Collective Bargaining Agreement and that’s why a major overhaul is unlikely. Payton said a couple of weeks ago that you have a roster and a p-squad, but really you’ve got 69 guys. Look at Week 1. Practice squad receiver Lil’Jordan Humphrey started, played the second-most snaps among receivers and logged the Broncos’ first touchdown of the season. The good news for him is he can only be elevated three times and then the team has to promote him to keep using him. But it would be simpler — and better money for players — if there were just more roster spots to go around.

Everyone keeps comparing Russell Wilson to Peyton Manning and how he changed his game to win the Super Bowl. I don’t agree with that comparison. A much better comparison is to a gunslinger that had a lot of success but couldn’t win the big one until he got older, had a run-focused coach to control the game, and got some help from a great running back. That coach was Mike Shanahan, the running back was Terrell Davis, and that QB was John Elway. The early career for Russ was similar to Elway under Dan Reeves. I am hoping Sean Payton can be Shanahan and Javonte Williams can be Terrell Davis. If they can be 80% as successful as those ’90s teams, it will mean great things for this year’s team. It might be sacrilege in Denver, but what do you think?

— Paul Heaton, Atlanta

Hey Paul, thanks for writing in. Hadn’t ever given much thought to the Wilson/Manning comparison beyond just the fact that they’re high-profile, accomplished players who moved to Denver after long stretches elsewhere. I can see the parallels in your second example, but would think about it more generally.

Wilson had an environment that really worked for him in Seattle. Clearly. His numbers and accomplishments back that up. Last year, obviously, did not work. Some of it is coaching and some of it is on the player. As players get older, their abilities change. The best ones figure out how to continue maximizing what they do have rather than getting hung up on what they used to have. If that’s controlling games and defenses with your mind and leaning on a decade-plus of experience, that’s great. If it’s using a run game and a stout defense to get in position to win, fine. If that’s relying on a coach like Payton or Shanahan to help you discover what you need to do, all the better.

Not only that, but quarterbacks and coaches also have to adjust to what they have on their roster. At the moment, Denver looks like a team that has to play through its run game. If they get their full complement of receiving options back at some point, maybe they’re a little more dynamic.

For the awesome money these men make, how do these football stars get along with other teammates? Is there a rivalry? If they are in a game or if they see them on the street, or in a club, is it all ego or respect for their other players?

— Boni, Chicago

Great question, Boni. The short answer is there’s probably every type of relationship you can imagine. In some ways it’s like a normal workplace environment and then in some cases it’s not. But you have guys who happen to play the same or similar positions that hit it off really quickly — inside linebackers Josey Jewell and Alex Singleton are good examples — and there are players who forge extremely close friendships — like safeties Kareem Jackson and Justin Simmons. Guys come from all different socioeconomic backgrounds, family structures, parts of the country, types of colleges, etc.

Not everybody has to be best friends within a locker room, but they have to figure out how to work together. And if a couple guys happen not to like each other, there’s a responsibility to figure out how to not let that impact the team on the field.

Obviously some players do make a lot more money than others. In the locker room last week, there were a couple of players marveling at the news that Joey Bosa had got five years and up to $170 million with $122 million guaranteed in San Francisco. For the most part, though, I think players take more of the mindset of trying to secure their own money rather than worrying about what other players get. Remember, the more the top players drive up the market price, the more everybody benefits. That’s part of the reason you see top running backs trying to take a hard line. What Jonathan Taylor accepts has a trickle down impact on a lot of other running backs.

Can we talk about Damarri Mathis? He struggled mightily out there on Sunday and the schedule isn’t going to get any easier. Are there any other options at that cornerback spot? Casey Hayward and Bryce Callahan are still out there. Honestly, I might even take Chris Harris’ old-self back.

— Mark, Arvada

Hey Mark, yeah, it was not Mathis’ best performance. He’s been limited some during the preseason by an ankle injury. He wasn’t on the injury report this past week, but he did miss quite a few preseason reps. Not an excuse, obviously, but the second-year player out of Pitt showed promise as a rookie, so you wonder if part of Sunday’s performance was about knocking rust off.

If he doesn’t bounce back, the Broncos could consider one of those veterans, but the fact is they already have one on the roster. That’s Fabian Moreau, who signed early in training camp and really played well as the preseason went along. If they decide to make a change, he’d probably get the first crack — especially after feisty, tough-minded Ja’Quan McMillian was inactive for Week 1.

One other consideration: If the Broncos get shorthanded at safety in the coming weeks because P.J. Locke’s out until at least Week 5 and Caden Sterns was injured Sunday, one route to consider is playing Essang Bassey at safety, moving Mathis to the nickel and putting Moreau on the outside.

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Hey Parker! I’m pretty happy with our running back situation with Javonte Williams, Samaje Perine and now Jaleel McLaughlin. How do you think the splits are going to be with those three this season?

— Marshall, Parker

Hey Marshall, thanks for writing in and getting us going this week. A lot of love recently for Jaleel McLaughlin. He’s become the story of training camp, at least as far as surprises go.

It’s hard to say what the split of playing time and touches will be mostly because there’s really only one way to find out how Williams holds up in returning to regular-season play. His recovery has been nothing short of remarkable, but there’s no guarantee he’s going to get 15-18 carries every week and bounce back normally each time.

The next question becomes whether Sean Payton and the Broncos think McLaughlin is a nice piece who can provide a different pace, catch a few passes and pop a big play every once in a while or if they think he’s a game-changer. It’s clear they like him, but I’m not sure we know the answer to that question all the way yet. They may not, either.

At this point the answer to your question starts with what we know and what we don’t. The thing we know is Perine’s been in there the whole way and has looked really solid this offseason. I think he’s the safest bet for double-digit touches week in and week out early in the season. If they’re getting contributions from all three, all the better.

The mix is likely to change over the course of the season because of wear and tear and also just as the Broncos figure out who they are as an offense and what they do well. But early on I’d guess Perine, then Williams, then McLaughlin getting a handful of chances per game between running the ball and catching it.

I haven’t seen too many of the preseason games yet because they’re preseason games. Any of the rookies looking impressive to you so far?

— Mike E., Westminster

We’ve covered McLaughlin, so let’s get to a couple of others. Defensive coordinator Vance Joseph certainly piqued my interest when he said of inside linebacker Drew Sanders “he makes a play a day that nobody else can make.” The other guys playing his position — Josey Jewell and Alex Singleton — are solid players, so that’s saying something. Sanders size and athletic ability jumps off the page. It’s a lot to learn how to play in the middle of the field — he really only did it last year at Arkansas after playing more on the edge at Alabama earlier in his college career. But that leads to the next intriguing point: Joseph said they’ll use him in ways during the season that they don’t show in camp. So, keep an eye on that.

Less in the true “standout” category, but I’m interested to see what happens with rookie tackles Demontrey Jacobs and Alex Palczewski. They’ve been running more and more with the No. 2 groups — though one could bump back to the No. 3 line when starting right tackle Mike McGlinchey returns. Maybe they both end up on the practice squad, but the offensive line group past the starting five looks wide open. At this point it feels like Cam Fleming and Kyle Fuller probably make the team, but that would leave likely two more spots and I’m not sure anybody’s grabbed the bull by the horns and grabbed one just yet. Similar for outside linebackers Marcus Haynes and Thomas Incoom. They may end up as practice squad guys, but they’ve both flashed in practice over the course of camp.

I can’t believe Mike Shanahan didn’t advance to the Hall of Fame finalist status. There are only four head coaches with two Super Bowl wins not in the Hall of Fame and only one has more regular victories than him (Andy Reid with 247). I’d argue that he’s a better candidate than guys who are already there like Bill Cowher, Dick Vermeil and Tony Dungy.

— Cameron, Lakewood

You don’t have to convince me, Cameron. Plus, the only reason Reid isn’t in already is he’s still coaching. Six coaches have won back-to-back Super Bowls. Chuck Noll did it twice, Vince Lombardi, Don Shula, Jimmy Johnson, Bill Belichick and Shanahan. The first five are in the Hall. Shanahan will have to wait at least one more year.

It’s an interesting conversation because Buddy Parker, this year’s coach/contributor finalist, is certainly deserving, too. But each year Shanahan doesn’t get in, the conversation seems a little bit more ridiculous. His time will come. It could well be in 2024. Whenever it does, it’ll be overdue but still will result in quite a celebration around here.

Who are the biggest guys on the bubble right now?

— Vince K., Thornton

Well, Jacobs is 6-foot-6 and 315 and defensive lineman Elijah Garcia is 6-5, 302. OK, OK, bad joke.

As mentioned above, the offensive line feels pretty bubbl-y at the moment. Would have said receiver, too, but the bubble keeps shrinking as guys get injured — Jalen Virgil on Saturday being the latest. Even still, Lil’Jordan Humphrey, Kendall Hinton and Montrell Washington all feel very much on the bubble at this point after you figure a safe trio of Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton and Marvin Mims, Jr. and then probably Brandon Johnson (assuming he gets healthy, which he appears to be).

Cornerback is interesting, too. You’ve got starters Pat Surtain II and Damarri Mathis, then a pair of guys racing to get healthy by opening day in K’Waun Williams (ankle) and Riley Moss (core). If both are good to go, there’s one or maybe two spots depending on how many safeties the Broncos take. If both need more time, you could see some roster maneuvering to take three or even four of JaQuan McMillian, Essang Bassey, Fabian Moreau, Faion Hicks and Tremon Smith.

Oh, and there’s Albert Okwuegbunam. He threw a pretty good block on McLaughlin’s long kick return Saturday against the Niners. But is he going to make the roster ast TE4? Or is that job going to go to undrafted rookie Nate Adkins? Depends on if Payton and company see Albert O. as redundant to Greg Dulcich and not much of a helper on special teams or if they see him as making progress and worth continuing to develop. Gut says they’d think about keeping Adkins or going light at tight end — maybe to keep newly acquired running back and special teams staple Dwayne Washington as a fourth back — but there’s still a few days left to sort it out.

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My glass is usually always “half full,” but after Friday night, it’s half full of vinegar. What changes do you foresee to correct our offensive offensive line performance, other than Mike McGlinchey stepping in? Friday’s OL performance was very concerning. Even a Garett Bolles holding call is better than getting Russell Wilson cremated!

— A Referee, Greeley

Hey Ref! Thanks for kicking us off tonight. You’re a glass half full guy, eh?

I suppose the main reason for optimism is just not declaring the whole thing too broken to repair after 20 preseason snaps. Really, it’s pretty much that simple. Certainly Friday night was not pretty for, in particular, Denver’s left-side pair of tackle Garett Bolles and guard Ben Powers. It’s also their first time ever playing another team together. It was Bolles’ first time on a game field since October. And while Arizona isn’t exactly littered with star players, it’s also a preseason game with very little game planning involved. So let’s not panic just yet.

All of that being said, there’s truth to what my guy Mark Kiszla wrote Sunday regarding Denver not getting quarterback Russell Wilson hurt back there. Wilson was sacked 55 times last year – certainly not all on the offensive line – and found himself on the injury report three times. Can’t have a repeat on either of those stats for Denver to engineer a big turnaround this fall.

Coach Sean Payton said Monday that Denver had a few leverage issues, especially early. It might take Bolles more game time to knock the rust off and get into the rhythm of not under- or over-setting. And he and Powers have to continue to build a rapport. There’s nothing to suggest they won’t, but, like Payton said, the race is on to Sept. 10. That afternoon, it’ll be Maxx Crosby on the other side of the line of scrimmage.

Hello from Finland!

How have offensive lineman Lloyd Cushenberry III and defensive lineman Jonathan Harris fared through the preseason so far? Those two are the question marks or possibly weakest links in the trenches in my opinion.

— Jude, Lahti, Finland

Yo Jude, thanks as always for writing in. That game was so late Friday night you probably could watch with your Saturday morning coffee.

Cushenberry and Harris are both in line currently for starting roles. Whether Harris ends up a full-time starter remains to be seen, but either way, with the group the Broncos have up front, he’s in for serious playing time. Maybe a DeShawn Williams-esque 35 snaps a game or so. Roles up front might shift slightly when Mike Purcell returns from the Non-Football Injury list after an offseason knee issue. Purcell opened it up and ran quite a bit on the side field Monday, so an activation off the list could be close at hand.

As for Cushenberry, he’s drawn the expected rave reviews from the new staff about his intelligence and command of the offense. There’s no room for weak links on the offensive line, so it’ll be up to him – and the other four guys, obviously – to hit the ground running and show he can be powerful in the run game.

If Houston ends up with the first pick in next year’s draft I would trade whatever it takes to get Caleb Williams. What say you?

— Heath, Vancouver

Hey Heath, interesting thought, but first things first, there’s a wrinkle to your proposition. The Texans traded their own 2024 first-rounder to move up and nab both quarterback C.J. Stroud and outside linebacker Will Anderson in this year’s draft. So Arizona has Houston’s first-rounder in 2024.

That leaves open the possibility that the Cardinals could end up with the first two picks in the draft — if Houston and Arizona finish with the two worst records. And even if not, the Cardinals have two bites at landing the top pick. If they go Nos. 1 and 2, maybe they take Caleb Williams, the terrific USC quarterback, and Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison, Jr. Talk about overhauling your offensive future in one fell swoop. Of course, that would leave whoever’s got the No. 3 pick in line to draft North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye or potentially auction off that pick to what is sure to be a big set of suitors.

The only way Houston ends up with the top pick is if Cleveland finishes with the NFL’s worst record. The Texans have the Browns’ first-rounder thanks to the Deshaun Watson trade.

The best-case for the Broncos, of course, is that Russell Wilson plays much better this fall and you don’t have to worry about mortgaging even more of your future capital in pursuit of a quarterback to replace the one you already paid through the nose for. Consider what the acquisition cost of those top 2024 draft slots will be if Williams and/or Maye are thought to be available. Even to move up from the middle of the first round, you’re talking about multiple premium picks or maybe your 2024 first plus Pat Surtain II.

The cheapest way to end up with Williams is to finish with the worst record in the NFL. Which, that would obviously mean things went very poorly for Denver this fall with a roster that’s only getting substantially more expensive in 2024.

A much better outcome: The prospect of getting at least two solid years out of Wilson and using a mid-first round pick next spring on an edge rusher or tackle. Those don’t grow on trees, either.

You know the great thing? There’s 18 weeks of regular-season football before all that gets settled.

Parker, is Jason Elam still available because our kickers looked terrible against Arizona. This can’t possibly be the best players who are available. Mason Crosby’s still around, isn’t he?

— Matt, Denver

Hey Matt, good one to end on. Elam’s not walking through that door, but it was pretty wild watching Broncos kicking competition contestants Brett Maher and Elliott Fry each miss Friday in Arizona and former Denver kicker Matt Prater hit a bad ball on a field goal attempt. Each was decently long – Maher’s the shortest at 47 yards – and Fry did hit a 55-yarder. Overall, though, it was not exactly an inspiring chapter in the annals of placekicking. Then on Tuesday the Broncos waived Fry with an injury designation.

Regardless of how Maher performs in the coming weeks, Denver will have options. As you indicated, Crosby’s still out there as a free agent. So are Robbie Gould, Ryan Succop and Randy Bullock – he was a Broncos tryout and spent minicamp with the team in June – among veteran options.

Not only that, but currently a quick count shows almost half the teams in the league have two kickers in camp. Come Aug. 29 when rosters cut down (or the days before), there will be hundreds of players who come available and at least a dozen or more will be kickers.

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Hey Parker! Tim Patrick getting hurt again is terrible, but the silver lining is that it opens up a potential opportunity for one of the other guys on the squad. How much do you think Marvin Mims will contribute for us this year?

— Matthew K., Denver

Hey Matthew, thanks for writing in and getting this thing started this week. I appreciate your optimistic disposition, but if you’re the Broncos, there’s nothing good about Tim Patrick getting hurt. And it’s totally brutal if you’re Tim Patrick. I do see where you’re going with the question, though, and injury does lead to opportunity in the NFL.

Mims is one of the guys who could be counted on more with Patrick out. One of the interesting things about Mims will be how quickly he finds a role and what coach Sean Payton, receivers coach Keary Colbert and company think it is. Particularly, where does he play? He’s built like a slot receiver, but his skill set is geared more toward down-the-field speed. Not that he can’t play in the slot — he almost certainly will — but it’s still to be determined if that’s a really natural position for him.

Patrick was going to be a big, physical presence in the slot and so far the next man up for that opportunity has been second-year man Brandon Johnson, who dropped out of practice Tuesday but does not appear to be seriously injured. Payton likes that his speed, likes his disposition in the middle of the field and likes that he’s 6-foot-2. While every receiver’s outlook changed when Patrick got hurt and KJ Hamler waived on the same day, Johnson, Marquez Callaway and Mims are the ones who seem most directly impacted at this juncture. Let’s see how the preseason games play out.

What ever happened to Paxton Lynch? Last I saw he got benched in the XFL. Is he still trying to make it as a quarterback somewhere?

— Phil, Grand Junction

Hey Phil, good question. If there’s a football league out there, Paxton Lynch has probably played in it in the past few years. He spent a year — but didn’t play — in the Canadian Football League with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Early in 2022 he was in the USFL, then played parts of the 2023 XFL season with a pair of teams — the Orlando Guardians and then the San Antonio Brahmas. That team is coached by Hines Ward, while Orlando is coached by one-time Bronco Terrell Buckley.

The more you know.

Not the football career Lynch was expecting or what the Broncos brass hoped for when he was drafted in 2016, but good on him for continuing to find ways to play.

Anyone making decent noise in training camp so far? And who do you think could be on the roster that’s an UDFA?

— Mike, Denver

Hey Mike, I’d say there are several contenders and we’ll definitely cover more of them between now and the preseason opener Friday night at Arizona.

One group I’m interested in are the 2022 Day 3 draft picks — obviously not including Eyioma Uwazurike, who is suspended for at least the next year and facing criminal charges related to gambling in Iowa.

Among the many side effects of having so much coaching turnover in recent seasons is that each coach likes slightly different types of players. That means general manager George Paton and his staff are constantly trying to stay true to their process but also modifying for what the next coach wants. And that also means players end up on the team that the next coach isn’t as high on — differences that can get more pronounced once you’re beyond the consensus top-of-the-draft type of players and into the later rounds where roster depth is won or lost.

“It’s like the worst position you can possibly be put in (as a general manager). It’s starting from scratch every single frickin’ time,” ESPN analyst Louis Riddick told The Post just before the draft in April.

It’s pretty clear Matt Henningsen is going to be asked to play a big role. But Montrell Washington, Delarrin Turner-Yell and Luke Wattenberg all have roster fights on their hands. Washington has to earn trust as a return man and probably needs to show he can be at least a threat in the passing game, too. He quietly has had a pretty decent training camp so far, but that’s a crowded room. He needs to show out in the preseason.

Turner-Yell and Wattenberg both saw players drafted on Day 3 in 2023 at their positions by Paton and Payton in JL Skinner and Alex Forsyth, respectively. But neither looks like he’s going down without a fight. Wattenberg is playing stronger than a year ago and Turner-Yell has had a nice camp all around. If he can make himself a guy Mike Westhoff and Ben Kotwica want on all four special teams units, that’s a roster ticket right there.

As far as undrafted guys, running back Jaleel McLaughlin’s the buzziest name. We’ll see where the Broncos’ health lands by the end of camp, but I’m interested in watching edge guys Thomas Incoom and Marcus Haynes on Friday night. We’ll get into more on those guys and others later in the week.

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