Denver Broncos: Stock up, stock down after Patriots win

After the Denver Broncos pulled off a great road victory over the New England Patriots, whose stock is up and whose stock is down?

After a circus of rescheduling and waiting due to positive COVID-19 tests, the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots finally played on Sunday after having to take unexpected byes due to pandemic protocol the previous weekend.

In a shocker, the Denver Broncos defeated the Patriots 18-12 to jump to 2-3 on the season and get a huge confidence boost as they next prepare for the divisional opponent Kansas City Chiefs, who just picked up their fifth victory on Monday Night Football against the Buffalo Bills.

While this game brought the return of Drew Lock and Phillip Lindsay, the defense had a big showing. However, this game also exposed flaws the Broncos must improve upon if they wish to keep winning games.

Let’s get to breaking down the stock report.

Stock Up

Phillip Lindsay, RB

Welcome back, Phillip Lindsay.

In his first game since the season opener, in which he suffered from turf toe, Phillip Lindsay rushed on 23 attempts for 101 yards, the sixth 100-yard game of his career.

Although the offense sputtered to find life, and never reached the end zone, Lindsay could be called upon to move the chains and help the Denver Broncos get into field goal range. Here’s an interesting statistic about the young Phillip Lindsay: In those six 100-yard games, the Broncos have a perfect 6-0 record.

What does this mean?

Well, for starters, it means that the Broncos’ offense carries much more liveliness when Lindsay is on the field, and getting work in. However, in crunch time, we saw Lindsay’s carries get limited.

This was a bad move and resulted in a much tighter game. Lindsay’s performance on Sunday made two things crystal clear. One, he needs to be paid. John Elway cannot let Lindsay get away.

Two, the offense is much more successful when Lindsay is getting fed. It’s time to cut Phillip Lindsay loose and watch him go crazy.