The Denver Broncos face off against the Chicago Bears in Week 4 of the 2023 NFL season, and you can expect this matchup to go one of two ways. The Broncos are 0-3 and look like the worst team in the NFL. However, I'd argue that their Week 4 opponent, the Chicago Bears, are a worse team. Fortunately, if the game goes as it should, Denver should get their first win of the season.
And it's a must-win game for many reasons. If the Broncos were to lose this game, depending on how they lose it, I do truly think people could lose their jobs and starting spots could be replaced. There really is no excuse to not beat the Bears, who have not won a game in almost an entire calendar year. Justin Fields might be one of the worst starting QBs the NFL has seen this century, and Bears' head coach Matt Eberflus is clearly in way over his head.
It feels like the Nathaniel Hackett situation in 2022 is playing itself out in Chicago. Anyway, part of me thinks that this game could go one of two ways:
2022 - Denver Broncos vs. Tennessee Titans
or
2018 - Denver Broncos vs. Arizona Cardinals
In 2022, the Denver Broncos limped their way to a 3-5 start at the bye week, and they won a crucial game versus the Jacksonville Jaguars in London to close out their first half of the season. It was clear at this point that through eight games, Nathaniel Hackett was not someone the Broncos should have hired, and many felt like the team needed to come out of their bye week against the Titans and win.
I believe that if they had lost that game against Tennessee, Hackett should have been fired then. And guess what, they put on another poor offensive performance and lost the game. It was a huge disappointment on offense and a lot of us wondered how Denver used their two-week off time to prepare for the game.
They dropped to 3-6 and proceeded to lose four more games in a row.
Now, let's rewind back to 2018 when the Denver Broncos had started 2-0 with second-year head coach Vance Joseph running the show. After their 2-0 start, the Broncos proceeded to lose four straight games and sat at 2-4, but had a matchup the following week against the Arizona Cardinals, who were the worst team in the NFL that year.
If you guys remember, this was the game where Von Miller said this:
""I wouldn't say it's a must-win, but we gonna kick their a** though," Miller said Tuesday, per Nicki Jhabvala of the Athletic. "Make sure you put that up there. We're gonna kick their a**. They're gonna get our best this week.""Von Miller, 2018
This was Von Miller laying it down with no filters. It was a huge declaration that honestly felt a bit bold since the Broncos had lost four games up to that point. Well, Miller was right; Denver bested Arizona, 45-10, and it was a very, very fun game to watch. Denver picked off Josh Rosen three times and Emmanuel Sanders even threw a touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton that week.
To me, these are the only two outcomes for Week 4. The Broncos are either going to lose a very disappointing game or will kick the teeth out of the Bears.