The 2025 Mid-Season Review
By Orange Weekly Staff
· General
·
· 3 min read
While most fans take the bye week to reconnect with long-forgotten family members, the Orange Weekly crew is looking back on the season so far
Oh, what a strange journey it has been for the 9-2 Broncos. Sitting in first place in the AFC West, the team is in a good position for the playoff stretch as it gets a much-needed bye week this late in the season.
While most fans take the bye week to reconnect with long-forgotten family members, the Orange Weekly crew is looking back on the season so far.
As part of our grueling grading process, don't look too hard into that, the gang broke down who we thought were the offensive and defensive MVPs of the season, along with who was our biggest surprise/disappointment, and a final record prediction.
In no particular order,
**Offensive MVP**
David – Garrett Bolles
Jared – Garrett Bolles (and the offensive line)
Jon – J.K. Dobbins
Spotty – Bo Nix
KevDan – Quinn Meinerz
Adam – J.K. Dobbins
Summary – The big boys upfront have been the steadiest unit on an offense that has been inconsistent to poor so far. While Dobbins has easily been the best of the skill players until his injury, and Nix has been responsible for more than one improbable comeback, they were put in good positions due to one of the best trenches in the league, with Bolles and Meinerz leading the way.
**Defensive MVP**
David – Jonothan Cooper
Jared – Talanoa Hufanga
Jon – Nik Bonitto
Spotty – Zach Allen
KevDan - Hufanga
Adam – Hufanga
Summary – Anybody on the defensive side of the ball could have been put here, and a case could be made for them (although the reigning DPOY in Pat Surtain II did get left out). A front seven that boasts names like Cooper, Allen, and Bonitto will get the bulk of the attention, but Hufanga has taken a good defense from last season and made it elite. A ferocious blitzer and run defender in the box and better-than expected in the pass game, Hufanga is playing at an All-Pro level.
**Biggest Surprise **
David – Not missing a beat without PS2
Jard – Dondrea Tillman
Jon – Dobbins going down
Spotty – Dobbins going down
KevDan – Not enough support/too much criticism of Nix
Adam – JaQuan MacMillian emergence
Summary – It was completely reasonable to assume that Dobbins would upgrade the Denver running attack from the year prior. How much the Broncos leaned on Dobbins before his injury was the surprise. Always talented, if injury-prone, Dobbins seemed set on a 1,000-yard season before his injury. Playing at a high level without Surtain and supporting cast members like MacMillan coming up clutch has made this a “good surprise” list for the most part.
**Biggest Disappointment**
David – “Where are the strip sacks?”
Jared – Evan Engram (in general)
Jon – Penalties
Spotty – Evan Engram (in general)
KevDan- lack of turnovers
Adam – Payton’s play-calling
Summary – Nothing is perfect, and neither are the Broncos. While Payton’s play-calling has drawn the ire of several, along with penalties, the lack of impact from Evan Engram is the most visible. However, with as dominant a defense as Denver has been this year, the lack of turnovers (9) and +/- margin (-3) can’t be ignored.
**Final Record**
David – 12-5
Jared – 13-4
Jon – 15-2
Spotty – 13-4
Adam – 13-4
KevDan – 14-3
Summary - While the bulk of the home schedule is done, the 2nd half of the season, on paper, doesn’t seem as brutal as before the bye. Still, you have to reason the Broncos are due for a clunker at some point OR might be resting starters coming the end of December. While we would all like to be as optimistic as Jon, going 4-2 the rest of the way seems like a good hedge.
The resurgent Broncos head in the 2nd half of the year looking to solidify it's place in the AFC. While each week brings a new storyline, the Broncos seemed poised to retake the AFC West crown and build off of last years unexpected postseason birth.
Tags: Broncos, Broncos Country, NFL, Denver, Football, NFL, Blogs