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LAS VEGAS — The Denver Broncos hot streak caught fire in Vegas. Not only did the Broncos extend their win streak to an NFL-best 10-straight, they extended their win streak over the Raiders to four.
Sitting at 11-2, the Broncos leave Las Vegas with the season sweep on their division rival.
Here’s what stood out throughout the game.
Broncos lock up crucial tiebreaker
Sunday’s win over the Raiders was more than just sweeping a division rival and getting another notch in the win column. The win over the Raiders secured the two-way tiebreaker for the Broncos over the New England Patriots.
And it’s all thanks to the Raiders. With the win, the Broncos moved to 6-0 in common opponent games with the Patriots. New England is 5-1 in those games. Their only loss? To the Raiders in Week 1.
Because of that, the 11-2 Broncos took the No. 1 seed from the 11-2 New England Patriots. As long as the Broncos maintain the same or better record than the Patriots, they will have the two-way tiebreaker over them throughout the rest of the season.
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This, however, does not guarantee the Broncos the tiebreaker over New England in a three-way tie with another team involved.
Bo Nix is money in Vegas
In The City of Lights, Bo Nix wasn’t flashy. But he was efficient, accurate and meticulously diced up the Raiders’ defense.
Nix finished the game with a completion percentage over 80, despite over 35 passing attempts. Nix made smart decisions with the ball all game long.
Additionally, he manipulated the pocket all day long and used his feet to step up often.
Nix also scored the first touchdown of the game with his feet.
Marvin Mims Magic
With the game tied 7-7 midway through the second quarter, Marvin Mims Jr. made his mark on the game along with the game-changing play.
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Catching the Raiders punt at the 48-yard line, Mims had nowhere to go as he was stuck in a sea of orange, black, blue and silver.
What seemed to be a minimal return quickly changed when Mims evaded a tackle, exploded out of the left side of the blunder and turned on the burners. Taking off down the left sideline, the All-Pro returner directed his blockers to take out the Raiders’ punter.
After that, it was smooth sailing to the end zone for a 48-yard touchdown return.
In his first two years in the NFL, Mims was the best returner in the league, racking up two Pro Bowl trips and two All-Pro awards. On Sunday, he notched his first return touchdown of the season.
After crossing the end zone, Mims hit the Broncos-friendly crowd with a Mile High Salute.
The Broncos took the lead with that play and never looked back.
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Vance Joseph turns up the heat in Vegas
A week before, on Sunday Night Football, the Broncos’ defense allowed 26 points and 419 yards to a struggling 3-8 Washington Commanders team playing their backup quarterback Marcus Mariota.
There was little reason to panic, however, since Denver‘s defense had been elite up to that point.
A week later, the same concerns lingered at the beginning of the game.
A struggling Raiders’ offense meticulously drove down the field on their first possession for an easy passing touchdown from Geno Smith to Brock Bowers. What was most surprising on the first drive was the lack of pass rush. Smith had all the time in the world to throw the ball, despite going up against the best pass rush in the NFL.
Following that drive, Vance Joseph decided to turn up the heat on Geno in Vegas by brining the pressure.
A key double linebacker blitz on second down allowed Justin Strnad to force Smith to miss an open Ashton Jeanty down the left sideline. The very next play, another blitz nearly turned into a Zach Allen pick-six.
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In Vegas, the key to Denver’s defense dominating was simply Jospeh turning up the heat.
RJ Harvey’s breakout
In Las Vegas, Sean Payton put all his chips on rookie second-round pick RJ Harvey.
Right out of the gate, it was clear Payton wanted the rookie to have a breakout game. In Denver’s first drive—that spanned over half the first quarter and ended with a touchdown—Harvey was the featured player.
The Broncos’ rookie running back had a team-high five touches, including three runs for 30 yards.
However, it was his third-down catch and determination to not go down that highlighted the drive.
Later in the drive, Harvey’s 15 yard run through the tackles displayed his ability to run successfully in the tackles.
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Harvey was rewarded for his efforts in the third quarter with a three-yard touchdown run up the gut.
On the day, Denver’s rookie back finished as their leading rusher and tied Courtland Sutton for the most receptions.
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