Denver Broncos 3 stock up, 3 stock down following gut-wrenching loss to New York Jets

The Denver Broncos suffer, yet again, another gut-wrenching loss and are now up to 275 days since the team last experienced a victory at home in front of the fans. Denver dropped their Week 5 contest against former Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett and the New York Jets by a score of 31-21. For the most part, the defense saw minor improvements, more particularly in the secondary, but failed to contain the run game on New York's offense.

With an abysmal 1-4 record to start the season, you have to imagine head coach Sean Payton and the ownership is seriously considering major changes to the roster in the coming weeks. It will be a tough task to rally from 1-4 to make the playoffs, considering only nine NFL teams have ever done it. While the defense has lost Denver its first three games, the offense is at fault for their third consecutive loss at home.

Denver Broncos Stock Up following loss to Jets:

RB Jaleel McLaughlin

Despite not being utilized enough during Sunday's matchup, undrafted rookie RB Jaleel McLaughlin continues to make the most of his opportunities and produce at a high level. The Youngstown State product ran nine times for 68 yards on the ground (7.6 yards per attempt) and caught three passes for 21 yards and a touchdown. McLaughlin's combination of short-area quickness and agility is through the roof and should be utilized more often moving forward.

OLB Nik Bonitto

While his contribution disappeared in the second half, second-year edge rusher Nik Bonitto had himself an impressive first half. The Oklahoma product garnered two sacks and two QB hits which quickly engaged Denver's pass rush. If any player has been a bright spot on the Broncos' defense the last two weeks, it certainly has been Nik Bonitto. He'll most definitely need to be more consistent as an every-down rusher however, seems to be a good find by GM George Paton.

CB Patrick Surtain ll

Broncos CB Patrick Surtain ll locking up premiere receivers, what else is new? The stud corner had himself quite the game allowing just one reception for 12 yards through all four quarters when primarily covering Jets WR Garrett Wilson. In addition, Surtain ll intercepted Jets QB Zach Wilson in crunch time which gave the Broncos offense the ball back in the final moments. No matchup is too steep for the third-year Broncos CB. If it wasn't obvious already, this game clearly proved who the better player was between Surtain ll and Jets CB Sauce Gardner.