The Denver Broncos are going into the playoffs as the number two seed and a first-round bye with an overall record of 12-4. For most of the season they were regarded as either the best or second best team in the AFC but kind of go limping into the playoffs with more doubters than they’re use to in recent history.
The season started off as it usually does for a Peyton Manning led team, winning six of their first five. After that they hit a rough stretch though, losing their next two out of three and escaping a game against the Miami Dolphins with a narrow three point victory. After that they only had one more hiccup, losing to the Cincinnati Bengals in a primetime game by a score of 37-28.
Statistically the Broncos had a great season. The Broncos finished fourth in total offense (402.9 yards per game), fourth in passing yards per game (291.3 yards per game), third in total defense (305.2 yards per game), ninth in passing defense (225.4 yards per game), and second in rushing defense (79.8 yards per game). Manning had himself another great year as well: 4,727 yards passing (4th), 39 passing touchdowns (2nd), 66.2% completion percentage, and a 101.5 passer rating. According to PFF (subscription) Manning had the tenth best PFF grade for a quarterback and the sixth best PFF quarterback rating.
Something they had this regular season that they haven’t had in the past is a very solid defense. They had the best PFF grade for overall defense this season by a margin of 21.3. This season their overall grade was 122.7 and last season their overall defense grade was 63.7. The biggest change in their defense was their pass coverage. They went from a -2.0 grade in 2013 to a 34.6 in 2014, which was second best in the league. That improvement on defense will certainly be advantageous if they have to play a game in the snow in New England where Manning has never played well.
What has worried me about them throughout the regular season, however, is how they’ve performed against playoff teams. Against all the playoff teams they’ve faced this season (New England, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Seattle, and Arizona), they went 2-3. With two of those losses coming from AFC foes, there’s a good chance they’ll end up meeting one of them for a chance to get back to the Super Bowl.
The Denver Broncos had a tremendous regular season. However, as it was last season, it will all be for naught if they fail to win a Super Bowl. This is a team that knows the regular season is only important for getting into postseason form and for gaining home field advantage throughout. Once it’s playoff time they’re not a team that’s going to hang their hats on what they did in the regular season. With such a veteran team they’re certainly going to benefit from the bye week they earned with their performance in the regular season.