The uniforms recall 1977. The coaching clash recalls 2011. And the game itself pushes 2025’s NFL season into its second half.

With nine weeks in the books, we begin Week 10 in thin air and high altitude. The Denver Broncos (7-2) are atop the AFC West, tied with two other upstarts for the best record in their conference. They’re home favorites against the Las Vegas Raiders (2-6), who come off a crushing overtime loss Sunday. There’s a lot to appreciate on the field and in the booth. Here’s a game day run-through in anticipation of “Thursday Night Football.”

How to watch Raiders at Broncos

• **Venue: **Empower Field at Mile High — Denver

• Time: 8:15 p.m. ET, Thursday

• TV (national): Prime Video

• **Raiders, in market: **ABC channel 13 (KTNV)

• Broncos, in market: ABC channel 7 (KMGH)

• **Streaming (local): **Fubo (Stream Free Now)

• Watching in person? Get tickets on StubHub.

“Thursday Night Football” also streams with NFL+ or a Twitch account.

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The good and bad with each team

Las Vegas

Good: Brock Bowers is back. Last year’s rookie breakout missed all of October with an injured knee. His return in Week 9 came with a megaphone and a subwoofer — 12 catches, 127 yards and a trio of touchdowns. He became only the fourth tight end in the last 25 years, and the first since Rob Gronkowski in 2014, to put up at least 120 receiving yards and three touchdown grabs in a single game, per TruMedia.

On the other side, perennial Pro Bowler Maxx Crosby has three sacks in his last three games. He commands double-teams and wrinkles pockets. Las Vegas’ rush defense has been solid, bottling up opposing running backs to 3.9 yards per carry so far.

Bad: Hang tight, maybe stretch a bit. It’s a long list. The Raiders are 29th in points per game and 30th in yards per game. Geno Smith has thrown 11 touchdowns and 11 picks in eight starts. His INT rate with the Seattle Seahawks was 2.1 percent; this year’s mark has swelled to 4.6. First-rounder Ashton Jeanty is averaging an unsightly 3.4 yards per attempt on the road. Vegas is No. 30 in both third- and fourth-down defense. The team just lost a 30-29 OT heartbreaker to the Jacksonville Jaguars, then sent them its most reliable receiver. The silver and black have bad vibes right now.

Denver

Good: The Broncos are on a six-game winning streak, their longest uninterrupted run since 2015, when they won Super Bowl 50. Four of those wins came via fourth-quarter comebacks, and two of those four were historic improbabilities. Per TruMedia, the offense’s expected points added (EPA) goes from No. 22 in the first three quarters (minus-19.7) to first in the league in the fourth quarter (42.0). Bo Nix finds the juice when it matters most.

More saliently, Denver’s defense is soul-crushing. Vance Joseph’s group is second in net yards per dropback and fourth in yards per carry allowed. Nik Bonitto (eight sacks), Jonathon Cooper (seven) and Zach Allen (five) front the NFL’s best pass rush, which leads the league in total sacks (40) by a wide margin. The Broncos are the first team since the 2000 Tampa Bay Buccaneers to reach the 40-sack threshold through their first nine games of the season.

Bad: Pat Surtain II, reigning Defensive Player of the Year, suffered a pectoral strain in Week 8 and will miss his second straight game. Fellow cornerback Riley Moss is dealing with ankle trouble but practiced in full Wednesday. As good as this defense is, it’s gone without a takeaway in five of its nine games — the team has a negative turnover differential at minus-3. And the Broncos are losing the penalty push and pull. Opponents have 29 first downs from flags, while Denver has 20.

Pete Carroll vs. Sean Payton

These two were fixtures of the 2010s. Carroll led the Seahawks and Payton paced the sideline for the New Orleans Saints. Was there any overlap? Oh, yeah, “Beast Quake” so very much happened:

The play was “17 Power.” Rarely used in our wide zone scheme.

Marshawn Lynch had been begging to run it all week. Coaches were hesitant – a rookie (me!) kept messing it up in practice.

Our right guard dropped some wisdom: “When you keep the defense going side to side, you can… pic.twitter.com/4eVqFnmhRl

— OKUNG (@RussellOkung) July 22, 2024

Each head coach won a Super Bowl last decade. Payton, who rose through the ranks as a passing savant, lifted the Lombardi Trophy in February 2010. He hits Thursday with 177 career wins in 18 regular seasons. Carroll, originally a defensive backs specialist, followed suit four years later. He comes into Mile High with 172 regular-season wins in 19 years.

Payton owns the better regular-season record in this head-to-head coaching matchup (4-1), while Carroll has postseason bragging rights (2-0). These two add a cool subplot to this rivalry game.

Uniform pairings

Turn back the clocks and turn up the brightness. Denver is a perfect 3-0 in their “Mile High Collection” retros:

These rock so hard. It might’ve been Sir Isaac Newton who once posited horse + sword = awesome.

What we might hear on the broadcast

**From the booth: **Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstreit are in their usual TNF spots, with Kaylee Hartung handling the sideline report. Herbstreit’s first-ever “College GameDay” telecast was at Colorado back in 1996. He’s on the show once again this weekend, which airs from Texas Tech’s campus Saturday morning. Peter, his Golden Retriever, travels with him. Will Herbstreit tell us how to function without REM sleep? Nostalgia goes deep this week, as Michaels’ first-ever Super Bowl call involved a Broncos team in bright orange jerseys (XXII in 1988). Our prediction: The play-by-play voice fondly remembers longtime Broncos linebacker Karl Mecklenburg, while his broadcast partner inhales caffeine.

**Las Vegas’ bumper music — **Three predictions, sorted by likelihood:

1. Elvis Presley’s “Viva Las Vegas” is all but a lock.
2. N.W.A’s “Express Yourself,” as rap’s first rebels popularized the Raiders fitted.
3. The Killers’ “When You Were Young,” because the band formed in Las Vegas … and because that song rips.

**Denver’s bumper music — **Same as above:

1. R.E.M.’s “Orange Crush,” because the uniforms necessitate it.
2. John Denver’s “Rocky Mountain High,” no stadium speakers banger, but a fitting choice from the former poet laureate of Colorado.
3. Lil Baby’s “No Fly Zone,” if the secondary intercepts Smith.

Fantasy fusion team

Players to wear both jerseys, via Pro Football Reference

• QB: Steve Beuerlein, 1988-2003
• RB: Hewritt Dixon, 1963-70
• WR: Javon Walker, 2006-09
• TE: Gene Prebola, 1960-63
• FLEX: Latavius Murray, 2014-22

We’ve made a strange squad here. But the fusion defense would be nasty, led by All-Pro pass rusher Lyle Alzado and Hall of Fame DB Willie Brown … and, uh, Bill Romanowski.

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Raiders at Broncos odds

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Nov 6, 2025

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