Can the Broncos Run the Table and Go Undefeated?
Twelve and oh! Let that sink in for a second. While the rest of us have been grinding through losses, nail-biters, and "how did I lose that game" moments, the Denver Broncos have managed to go undefeated through twelve weeks of play. No losses. No ties. Just wins – a lot of them big wins. But as we head into the final stretch of the regular season with four games left, the question every other GM in this league is asking is the same: are these guys actually as good as they look? Can anyone stop them?
After digging into the numbers on both sides of the ball, the uncomfortable answer for the rest of the league is this: yeah, they may be heading for perfection.
The Offense: Manning Is Having a Season for the Ages
Let's start with the obvious. Peyton Manning is currently putting up one of the most dominant quarterback seasons this league has ever seen. Through twelve games he's completing 58.6% of his passes for 3,709 yards, 34 touchdowns, and just 10 interceptions, good for a staggering 114.6 passer rating. But the number that really jumps off the page is his yards per attempt: 10.45. That's not just good — that's "I don't care what defense you're running" territory. Manning isn't just moving the chains, he's detonating them.
What makes it even scarier is that he has real weapons at every level. The Broncos are on pace to have three receivers crack 1,000 yards on the season:
Ronnie Brown — 59 receptions, 1,188 yards, 20.1 yards per catch, 13 TDs
Marty Booker — 61 receptions, 1,082 yards, 17.7 yards per catch, 8 TDs
Jabar Gaffney — 42 receptions, 806 yards, 19.2 yards per catch, 7 TDs
Three receivers averaging over 17 yards per catch. Manning has options no defensive coordinator can take away, and when you try to take one away, the other two eat you alive.
If Manning has time he will carve up opponents, and so far this season opposing defenses have not been getting to the QB. The Broncos offensive line has surrendered just 13 sacks all season. Thirteen. That's barely over one per game. Manning has had all day to throw every single week, and he's made defenses pay for it.
The run game has been next level too, with Ron Dayne churning out 1,140 yards at 5.7 per carry — that's not a running back, that's a weapon. The one genuine crack in the Broncos armor is that Dayne is banged up and will miss at least a week, leaving P.J. Pope seemingly as the primary option. Pope is serviceable (4.2 ypc) but he's a clear step down, and Week 15 on the road at the Texans could be a spot where that matters.
The Defense: Quietly as Good as the Offense
Here's where things get really interesting, and where it becomes clear what a complete team this is. The Broncos aren't just winning because Manning is torching everyone — their defense is the #1 unit in the entire league, allowing just 18.4 points per game. This is a complete football team.
The pass rush is deep and dangerous. Matt Walters is near the top of the league with 13 sacks on his own. But he's not alone. Victor Adeyanju has another 6 sacks, and the rest of the team can swarm to the ball as well
In the secondary, Ken Hamlin has been a legitimate ballhawk, racking up 6 interceptions, 81 return yards, and 2 defensive touchdowns. He also leads the team in passes defensed with 26. Al Wilson anchors the middle with 78 tackles and the kind of physical presence that sets a defensive tone from the jump.
This isn't a defense built around one star. It's a system. And that makes it a lot harder to game plan against.
The Road Ahead: Four Games, Three Real Tests
Don't assume the Broncos are just going to cruise to 16-0. Their remaining schedule actually has some bite to it. We ran each matchup through a model factoring in scoring averages, defensive rankings, quarterback efficiency, yards per attempt, and home/road splits to come up with predicted scores and win probabilities. Fair warning: the results are not exactly comforting if you're rooting against Denver.
Week 14 vs. Chiefs (6-6) Predicted score: Denver 27, Kansas City 16
This is the most manageable game left on the schedule. Byron Leftwich is completing just 52.8% of his passes with a modest 86.7 rating — a full 28 points below Manning — and Travis Henry is averaging only 3.4 yards per carry behind an offensive line giving up sacks at an alarming rate. Playing at home, Denver should handle business here comfortably. If this one is close at halftime, something has gone very wrong. Though it’ll be interesting to see how the loss of Dayne impacts the game.
Week 15 at Texans (5-7) Predicted score: Denver 34, Houston 17
The road trip is the variable, and if Dayne will be healthy yet. Philip Rivers is completing under 50% of his passes and is sporting a 75.9 quarterback rating — the kind of numbers that don't scare anyone. Larry Johnson is a genuine threat at 4.6 yards per carry, but if the Broncos pass rush gets to Rivers early, this game gets ugly fast.
Week 16 at Chargers (8-4) Predicted score: Denver 27, San Diego 24
Circle this one — it's the most dangerous game on paper. Eli Manning has been playing lights out as well with a 90.5 passer rating and just 7 interceptions, and the Chargers' offensive line is legitimately good — Tony Moll has allowed just 1 sack all season. Plaxico Burress (1,009 yards, 8 TDs) is as dangerous a receiver as Denver will have faced all year. Even though Denver has the advantage here, as a divisional game with a lot of pride on the line, this game will be hard fought. If there's one game the Broncos could lose, this is the week.
Week 17 vs. Vikings (9-3) Predicted score: Denver 24, Minnesota 21
The season finale at home against a 9-3 Vikings team with playoff implications of their own, and potential preview of the Super Bowl. Steve McNair is the likely starter and has been efficient, and Brandon Marshall (1,023 yards) and Tony Gonzalez (814 yards) give Minnesota legitimate weapons. But Zach Piller allowing 7 sacks on the offensive line is a vulnerability the Broncos pass rush will feast on. Back home, with Manning healthy and motivated, the model likes Denver heavily to close out a perfect regular season. Then again, it was only short time ago the Vikings were the proverbial David against Goliath when they upset not one, but two 15-1 teams.
The Verdict
While it’s easy to think somewhere along the way the Broncos will stumble, this team may be just too good. But when you actually look at what Denver has done — the elite quarterback play, the amazing pass protection, the three-headed receiving corps, and a defense that leads the league in points allowed — it's hard to find a smoking gun that suggests they won’t win out. Probably the biggest factor will be staying healthy the rest of the way.
The Chargers in Week 16 and the Vikings to end the season are most likely spots on the schedule where things could get dicey. But even then, you're betting against Manning, a defense generating pressure from everywhere, and a coaching staff that has clearly figured something out this season.
The rest of the league has four weeks to find an answer. Based on everything the numbers are saying right now, nobody has one yet.
