Broncos Player Grades At the Season's Halfway Point

After eight games, the Denver Broncos sit at 6-2 with what has been a roller coaster of a season. Both of the Broncos' losses came from last-second field goals, but they have two blowout wins under their belt, and a miraculous comeback featuring 33 fourth-quarter points.

There are a lot of things you can say about this team under Sean Payton, but you can’t say they quit. Outside of three games, the Broncos have had to fight tooth and nail to the final whistle, which got them to 3-2 in those games and 6-2 overall. 

Looking at player performance, there have been many great games and some awful ones as well. So that's where the player grades come in: every player with at least 200 snaps played through eight weeks has been graded. 

These grades highlight how the Broncos got to where they are this season, but they don’t show how things have begun to click over the past few games, even with their issues. With that said, let’s get into the player grades for the first eight games of the season as the Broncos get ready for the back nine. 

Offense

Quarterback

• Bo Nix | Grade: 64.3

The past few games have seen a bounce-back from Nix after a rough start to the season. The issues he had initally have been all but eradicated, and it shows.

Despite some rough offensive showings over the past few games, Nix has not been one of the main issues for the offense. 

Running Back

• J.K. Dobbins | Grade: 62.5

Dobbins is the lone back to qualify for a grade, and he has become a consistent and stable workhorse running the ball. With 121 yards more than the Broncos' rushing leader a year ago, his impact has been felt, and finding consistency was critical after the boom-or-bust start to the season. 

Wide Receiver

• Courtland Sutton | Grade: 66.7
• Troy Franklin | Grade: 60.3
• Pat Bryant | Grade: 60.7

The Broncos' receivers have been hit-or-miss. Sutton has been great consistently, but the Broncos still need Franklin or Bryant to step up consistently to help out their passing offense. Marvin Mims Jr. did not meet the snap requirement to get graded. 

Bryant has gotten more snaps due to his blocking, but there have been missed opportunities as a receiver, the fault of both him and the quarterback. Franklin is a zone merchant, but needs to find a way to have an impact against man coverage, where he has just eight catches for 40 yards on the season. 

Tight Ends 

• Evan Engram | Grade: 59.8
• Adam Trautman | Grade: 49.2
• Nate Adkins | Grade: 64.5

Ever since coming off injured reserve, Adkins has been a stalwart for the Broncos' offense with his blocking ability. On top of that, Engram has finally come along as a weapon in the passing game over the past few weeks. 

As for Trautman, despite a couple of good games, he has been mostly a liability this season, and the Broncos should be looking for an upgrade. He is more effective with fewer snaps, giving him fewer opportunities to hurt the offense, but a trade is the best way to improve this position, and the deadline is November 4. 

Offensive Line

• Garett Bolles | Grade: 76.7
• Luke Wattenberg | Grade: 54.7
• Quinn Meinerz | Grade: 58.2
• Mike McGlinchey | Grade: 57.1

Alex Palczewski and Ben Powers both did not qualify for a mid-season grade. Palczewski missed out on the snap count requirements, and Powers played one game since the quarter-season grades and didn’t have over 100 snaps in the last four contests. 

Bolles continues to be outstanding this season, with Meinerz starting to bounce back over the past few games. With McGlinchey and Wattenberg, they've had their bright moments, and you have to live with the negatives that come with it at this point. 

Defense