ENGLEWOOD, Colo. – It’s rivalry week.

For the first time in the 2024 season, the Broncos are ready to face a division opponent and they will try to make it eight games against the Las Vegas Raiders.

As the Broncos (2-2) look for their third straight win, they also have a chance to start their division slate on the right note. And as head coach Sean Payton noted this week, that’s critical to achieving Denver’s goals this season.

“It’s our first chance to play a division opponent (this year),” Payton said Wednesday. “Last year we finished 3-3 in the division. I can’t think of a team that accomplished anything worthwhile in your division that finished .500. Then take a team like Las Vegas. It has a long, storied history, and that’s for sure.” I appreciate that, especially to our fans. It’s our job to play our best football this Sunday and prepare for the game.

The Broncos haven’t posted an AFC West winning record since 2015, but their first win over the Raiders since 2019 could point Denver in that direction. With a win, the Broncos would also have a winning record after five games for the first time since 2021.

Denver could have history on its side when it comes to knocking off the Raiders this weekend. The Broncos will induct Riley Odoms and Steve Foley into the Ring of Fame as part of a series of alumni weekend celebrations honoring the 1977 AFC champion Broncos. Denver will wear its throwback jerseys for the first time and the field design at Empower Field at Mile High was inspired by the 1977 AFC Championship Game.

Of course, the Broncos defeated the Raiders that afternoon en route to their first Super Bowl appearance.

So here are the questions that will determine whether the Broncos can truly return to 1977 and score a decisive victory over the Raiders.

CAN BO NIX CONTINUE PLAYING ERROR-FREE SOCCER?

The weather in Week 4 gave both the Broncos and Jets problems in the first half, but Denver found a way to get two crucial shots on goal in the second half. But even during the struggles, quarterback Bo Nix kept his team out of danger. For the second week in a row, Nix didn’t turn the ball over and wasn’t sacked. The ability to avoid a critical mistake kept the Broncos in the football game and ultimately led to a Denver victory.

Nix also didn’t turn the ball over or record a sack in Week 3, helping him and the Broncos’ offense score 26 points in an upset win over the Buccaneers. The last time the Broncos didn’t allow a sack in consecutive games was in the final two weeks of the 2016 season. Nix could become the first rookie quarterback in franchise history to win three straight games, and he could also become the become the first Bronco since Jay Cutler in 2008 to go three straight games without a sack.

Nix has been pressured on 29.9 percent of dropbacks this season – the 11th-lowest rate in the NFL – but the challenge of playing clean football will become more difficult when Maxx Crosby returns on Sunday. Crosby returned to practice Friday and is listed as questionable for Sunday’s match.

“He’s a very special player now,” Payton said Friday. “I’m just telling you – his motor, his instincts, his running (defense), his passing (rush), he’s really, really, really one of the better players we see on defense. And there are so many elements. And then he jumps to the left side, you have your plan set up for the right side and you can see how he affects plays in the run game, on the back of the runs, in the pass game. It’s not just the effort we all know, it’s the athleticism, the skill. So when you combine all of those things and the football IQ, you have one of those top-notch players that is elite.”

Crosby has a sack in nine consecutive games against the Broncos, which is the fourth-longest streak since 1982 in which a player has at least one sack in a match against a specific opponent.

Even though Crosby may be in the lineup, Nix will try to play clean football. If he can — and can post some numbers like he did in Tampa Bay — the Broncos should improve their chances of winning on Sunday.