Stick here for live updates and analysis as Denver takes on the Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.
Live updates
Pre-game updates
Broncos inactives (9:33 a.m.):
QB Zach Wilson (3rd QB)
S JL Skinner (ankle)
WR Devaughn Vele
RB Blake Watson
CB Kris Abrams-Draine
TE Lucas Krull
DL Eyioma Uwazurike
WR Troy Franklin active again. OL Frank Crum active for the first time.
Vele cracked a rib in Week 1 and was out last week, but he was a full participant in Friday’s practice. — Gabriel
Field conditions (9:24 p.m.): The field looks fantastic, especially considering USF hosted Miami here last night. I did try to get onto ship to shoot cannon. It goes off after scores. I wanted to pretend Broncos scored a touchdown in the red zone. This is a bac matchup on paper. But at some point the Broncos offense has to look competitive, right? — Renck
Good morning from Tampa (9:09 a.m.): It’s a steamy September day on the Gulf coast. Fear not, I checked out the pirate ship here at Raymond James Stadium. It’s pretty cool, but they wouldn’t let Troy fire the cannon. Unfortunate. The Broncos, of course, will be trying to keep the cannon fire to a minimum today. They’ll need by far their best offensive effort today to avoid an 0-3 start.
Sean Payton still hasn’t won a game in September as Broncos coach. Will he get the job done today? Or will it be 0-6? — Gabriel
Scouting report (9 a.m.): Check out how the Broncos match up with the Buccaneers in Ryan McFadden’s scouting report.
Game predictions
Parker Gabriel, beat writer: Buccaneers 24, Broncos 20
Teams traveling to Florida early in the season typically don’t fare well. Sean Payton’s team hasn’t shown any signs through two weeks that it’s the type of group to defy conventional wisdom. And yet there’s something about games that seem cut-and-dried where they often don’t go as assumed. All that said, this Denver team is probably going to have to win a game before getting the benefit of the doubt. Close, but maybe not as close as the score indicates.
Ryan McFadden, beat writer: Buccaneers 23, Broncos 13
The Broncos offense is flawed from a personnel and schematic standpoint. The defense will keep Denver in the game but expect the Buccaneers to pull away in the second half. Don’t be surprised if Bo Nix is held without a touchdown pass for the third straight week.
Troy Renck, columnist: Buccaneers 24, Broncos 16
Everything about this game suggests a rout. That is where the reverse-lock theory comes into play. This is a bad matchup, like a fifth starter vs. an ace. It is on the road, where the Broncos stink. But my belief is that the offense cannot get worse. The offensive line will take this game personally and run the ball better against the light-box, heavy-blitzing Bucs. It will allow the Broncos to stay in the game. Bo Nix will throw his first touchdown pass. But it won’t be enough as Tampa Bay remains undefeated.
Sean Keeler, columnist: Buccaneers 24, Broncos 14
Did you know Bo Nix has as many completions over his first two career NFL starts (46) as Baker Mayfield did as a rookie in 2018? Or that Nix has a higher completion percentage (59.7) in those two starts than Baker in his initial pair of NFL starts (53.5)? And … yeah, well, that’s about it, as far as “half-full” stats go. The former Sooner also threw for three scores and passed for 26 first downs in those two games, while Mayfield’s Browns put up a combined 54 points. Nix’s Broncos, at their current clip, might not hit the 54 mark until the first week of October.
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He starts outside of Reynolds when the Broncos run this tried-and-true zone-beater. Gets up the field, lets Reynolds do his thing, then snaps inside. During camp and the preseason, rookie quarterback Bo Nix showed an affinity for the play, hitting Sutton on his route in rhythm time and time again, Parker Gabriel reports. Read the full story.
Broncos DE Zach Allen’s strong start attributed to high motor: “Play 16 and 48 look the same.”
It takes a special kind of stamina to chase down Steelers quarterback Justin Fields an entire game. That’s why Zach Allen is paid the big bucks.
Allen was in Fields’ face from the start of Denver’s matchup against Pittsburgh last week. But it wasn’t until the two-minute mark of the second quarter that Allen took down the speedy signal caller, maneuvering past a pair of offensive linemen before striking Fields on his blind side.
Through two games, Allen has been one of the best pass rushers in the league. He is tied with Kansas City defensive lineman Chris Jones for the eighth-most pressures (10). Head coach Sean Payton attributes Allen’s early success to his high motor, playing in 95% of Denver’s defensive snaps while being a reliable presence down after down, Ryan McFadden reports. Read the full story.
Renck: There’s plenty of blame to go around for Broncos’ awful offense, starting with O-line: “They are choosing to be tired.”
Last week reminded us that the Broncos are in deep trouble this season. Once again, interceptions were thrown, penalties called, runs stuffed and hands wrung.
The blaring alarm comes from offensive statistics that look bad, are bad, and seem impossible to comprehend for a team not wearing leather helmets and playing on black-and-white TVs with rabbit ears.
No one disputes the premise that the Broncos offense stinks. Where does the blame lie? Read the full column.
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