Kicking Off
Push your bedtimes back the next couple days — the Buffs and Broncos are playing under the bright lights this weekend. Colorado (2-2, 0-1 Big 12) will welcome No. 25 BYU (3-0) to Folsom Field on Saturday night, followed by the Broncos hosting the Cincinnati Bengals in a battle of 1-2 teams on Monday Night Football.
Against the Wyoming Cowboys last weekend, Colorado quarterback Kaidon Salter staked his claim to the starting job with a 304-yard, four-touchdown performance in a 37-20 win. But if Ryan Staub’s recent stretch as a starter is any indication — a dominant interconference performance followed by a sobering Big 12 matchup — Week 5 is crucial for Salter’s grasp on the starting job.
The Buffaloes are approaching Saturday’s home game with plenty of motivation. If BYU’s No. 25 ranking and 3-0 record isn’t enough, Colorado will come into the game with memories of last year’s 36-14 loss to the Cougars in the Alamo Bowl, the last collegiate starts for Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter. An 0-2 start in Big 12 play would not spell the end of Colorado’s contention hopes in the conference, but an upset victory would help Colorado establish its 2025 identity and kick off a tough Big 12 slate with real confidence.
Back-to-back losses on walk-off field goals have dropped the Broncos to 1-2, but a Monday Night Football clash against Cincinnati provides a prime opportunity to veer back on course. Now without quarterback Joe Burrow, the Bengals have devolved from playoff contender to a virtual non-factor, with subpar early returns from their defense, running game and offensive line. Denver thrived in taking care of non-playoff teams in 2024, and Nik Bonitto (three sacks) and the Denver defense is ready to make backup quarterback Jake Browning’s life miserable. The bigger challenge may be coaxing a complete performance out of both the offense and defense. Denver’s defense shined in Weeks 1 and 3 to make up for mediocre offensive performances, while that dynamic flipped in the Broncos’ Week 2 loss to the Colts. A home prime-time contest against an undermanned Bengals team is as enticing of a get-right game as there is in the NFL.
Tuning In
Colorado Buffaloes vs BYU Cougars, 8:15 pm MT on Saturday
Watch on ESPN, Listen on KOA 850 AM/94.1 FM
Denver Broncos vs Cincinnati Bengals, 6:15 pm MT on Monday
Watch on ABC, Listen on KOA 850 AM/94.1 FM
Health Check
26 Buffaloes players made Thursday’s list of Big 12 Football Player Availability Reporting for the Colorado-BYU clash, compared to only 10 for the Cougars. Kaidon Salter is the only quarterback on either list but holds a probable designation, while eight Colorado players are ruled out and defensive tackle Anquin Barnes Jr. was ruled out for the first half of the game. The Colorado defense will be without cornerback RJ Johnson but lists cornerback Preston Hodge and defensive end Brandon Davis-Swain as probable and defensive end Keaton Wade as questionable.
Though linebacker Dre Greenlaw’s placement on the injured reserve was a disappointing outcome for Broncos fans eager to see the defensive standout make his Broncos debut this month, the Broncos are relatively healthy heading into Monday Night Football. Defensive end John Franklin-Myers (hip) was the lone Bronco on the active roster with a limited practice designation on Thursday, while outside linebacker Nik Bonitto, inside linebacker Alex Singleton, tight end Nate Adkins and tight end Evan Engram were cleared for full practice. Engram’s return from a back injury is one of the most pressing questions entering Week 4. The former Giant and Jaguar has yet to establish himself as a receiving threat in the Broncos’ offense through two games (four catches for 33 yards in 2025) but has the track record and talent to emerge as Denver’s second-best receiving option if healthy.
Game Tape
On Guerilla Sports’ Big Al and CJ Podcast, Alfred Williams highlighted the stark improvement in quarterback Kaidon Salter’s performance and Buffaloes’ playcalling in Colorado’s 37-20 win over Wyoming:
“Kaidon last week… I’ve got to give mad props to a guy I’ve been rough on. The offensive coordination last week was spectacular. It was what I wanted it to be in Week 1. It’s just a shame we had to wait this long to get to it. … When you have a quarterback that is that mobile and he’s talented with his arm, you’ve got to get him on the perimeter, you’ve got to give some runs that are not just quarterback draws.”
https://x.com/guerillasports_/status/1971390566404587588
On the latest episode of the Going Deep show, Eric Goodman and Nathan Jackson examined one of the Broncos’ most pressing questions: is Bo Nix the Broncos’ quarterback of the future? Jackson said he did not have immediate confidence that Nix is that franchise guy but explained the path for Nix to ascend to that level in the seasons to come:
“You have to empower your quarterback to be your franchise quarterback and give him some rope and let him figure it out. I don’t think it’s time to bail on these expectations for Bo. Maybe the rhetoric — maybe we can tone down talking about how he’s going to be ‘this guy.’ But empowering him as the leader, trusting him, believing in him, putting him out there in situations you think he is going to succeed and thinking he is going to be the guy in the future is the right way to go, because that is what the team will rally behind.”
https://x.com/guerillasports_/status/1970609120991478075
Score Projections
Colorado Buffaloes 23, BYU Cougars 21 — Colorado upsets the ranked Cougars in a down-to-the-wire clash at Folsom Field. Kaidon Salter can’t quite replicate his four-touchdown performance, but he utilizes his passing and rushing abilities — and talented offensive weapons — to keep the Buffaloes a step ahead of visiting BYU. CU improves to 2-0 in the Ralphie VII era.
Denver Broncos 27, Cincinnati Bengals 13 — The Broncos won’t demolish the Bengals 48-10 like Minnesota did last week, but Denver is superior to Cincinnati at every position aside from the receiving corps… and the result on the field will reflect that. Denver’s defense will again be the star of the show, but the offense will improve from the three-and-out epidemic of last week’s loss to the Chargers.
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