The Denver Broncos are rolling down the stretch as we approach the final three weeks of the National Football League regular season.
Denver has won 11 consecutive games and already clinched a playoff berth following their thrilling 34-26 victory over the Green Bay Packers in Week 15. The route to securing the division title in Week 16 is simple, but securing both the division title and the No. 1 seed in the American Football Conference will require a lot of help from other teams.
To win the division this week, the Broncos must defeat the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Los Angeles Chargers need to lose or tie. The same would be accomplished if Denver ties and Los Angeles loses to the Dallas Cowboys.
To win the division title and the No. 1 seed: Denver would have to win, LAC loses or ties, the New England Patriots lose and the Buffalo Bills lose or tie.
Given Buffalo’s opponent, the Cleveland Browns, it’s more likely Denver would have to settle for just the division crown this week.
How have the Broncos gotten to this position? It pays well to have a phenomenal defense.
Denver’s defensive unit has been one of the best units in the league and features several star players. To keep this defense together in its current form, the Broncos must extend star linebacker Alex Singleton and star defensive tackle John Franklin-Myers during the offseason.
However, if Denver had to pick one or the other, ESPN’s Jeff Legwold believes a short-term extension is on the table for Singleton.
“Singleton, who turned 32 on Dec. 7 and had surgery to remove a cancerous tumor last month, has spoken about ‘just appreciating every moment I have in this game,’” Legwold wrote Tuesday. “The Broncos have signed several players to extensions over the past two seasons, leaving Singleton and defensive tackle John Franklin-Myers as their highest-profile unrestricted free agents in March. Singleton moved to middle linebacker this season to accommodate the arrival of Dre Greenlaw, and Singleton has flourished with his fifth 100-tackle season in the past six years. Though he likely won't get a long-term deal because of his age, the Broncos will want him back. As inside linebackers coach Jeff Schmedding said: ‘He's at Ph.D. level.’”
Both players have performed exceptionally well this season and are deserving of their respective paydays. With all the excitement this year’s team has brought already, keeping this defense intact for next year and beyond is imperative to their success.