Following a thrilling, come-from-behind win over the Los Angeles Rams in Week 3, the Denver Broncos now have their sights set on a different NFC West foe: the San Francisco 49ers. But before we talk too much more about Week 4, let's revisit the team's snap counts from Week 3.
When looking at the Broncos' snap counts from this game, there's certainly not much that jumps off the page. However, after three weeks, some trends are starting to develop.
The Broncos were on the field for 86 defensive plays in this game compared to just 67 for their offense, yet they still came away with a 30-26 win. Here's what we're taking away from each of those snaps.
Broncos' takeaways from Week 4 snap counts vs. Rams
1. Jonah Coleman's absence could be a problem
The Broncos placed rookie running back Jonah Coleman on short-term injured reserve last week with a high
ankle sprain just as he was starting to get going for the team.
The Broncos don't seem to have a clear-cut leader of this running game as J.K. Dobbins saw 33 snaps in this game while RJ Harvey got 24 and even Tyler Badie had 12. That speaks to an offensive coordinator who is looking for one of these guys to give him a spark.
However, Dobbins rushed for just 49 yards on 17 carries (less than three yards per attempt) and Harvey and Badie combined for just three rushing attempts. The Broncos are going to have a difficult time being good offensively without a much better effort in the running game.
2. Two Broncos are becoming an afterthought
It seems that Bo Nix has his three favorite targets in Jaylen Waddle, Courtland Sutton and Pat Bryant. At tight end, it could literally be anybody, as Nate Adkins has scored a touchdown in two consecutive games. However, players who the team had much higher hopes for — Evan Engram and Troy Franklin — are a smaller part of the offense all the time.
Engram didn't catch a pass in this game on two targets, while Franklin, who only saw 12 offensive snaps, caught one pass. However, it was a big one that went for 21 yards on the team's game-winning drive.
3. Defense still reigns supreme
Though Nix and the offense will likely get all of the credit for this comeback victory, it doesn't happen without a strong effort from the defense to keep things in check.
The fact that the Broncos' defense saw 86 offensive snaps from one of the league's most prolific offenses and they still came out victorious is quite impressive. In the first half, the Broncos holding the Rams to three field goals is something that most won't think about after a game like that, but it was a massive factor in the final result.
4. Jahdae Barron heating up?
Jahdae Barron was on the field for 24 defensive snaps in this game. Through the first two games, he saw a grand total of six snaps. Do the Broncos want to see more of him, or was this just a product of facing a pass-heavy attack in which Matthew Stafford attempted 55 passes?
Looking through social media comments, you will see many Broncos fans calling for Barron to replace Riley Moss in the starting lineup. That would be a terrible decision at this juncture of the season, but it's possible the Broncos are trying to ease their 2025 first-round pick into a more regular role.
Barron had one tackle in the game and it went down as a loss of yardage (TFL).
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This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: 4 snap count takeaways from Broncos’ 30-26 win over Rams
