Bengals vs. Broncos in Week 2: What the Broncos Did Right

The Broncos notched a win against the young Bengals on Sunday.

If you're reading that sentence, and you watched the game, you might not be too overwhelmed with joy.

As a Broncos fan who has witnessed Denver go through its worst losing stretch in more than 40 years, I'm happy with any win we can get. I don't care if it's by the slimmest of margins. I don't care if it's by two points against one of the bottom-feeder teams in the NFL. I don't care if it's after giving up more than 300 yards to a rookie quarterback, who has no business throwing for 300 yards in an NFL game.

Wins are hard to come by in the NFL. That couldn't be any more true for the Denver Broncos.

For a rebuilding team, the Broncos needed a win to gain some momentum. The Broncos needed a win to gain confidence in themselves.

As Denver heads to Tennessee in Week 3, these are several aspects that the Broncos excelled in on Sunday.

Running Game

Before the game, I wrote about how the Broncos needed to establish the run game early if they wanted to defeat the Bengals.

They did just that.

This may not have the explosive rushing attack of the Mike Shanahan era, but they're baby steps in the right direction.

With Knowshon Moreno out due to a hamstring injury, Willis McGahee stepped up in his absence.

Denver ran the ball a total of 36 times, including 28 with McGahee. Kyle Orton threw the ball a total of 25 times.

I can't remember the last time the Broncos ran the ball more times than they threw it.

McGahee also punched it in early from the 1-yard line. This was instrumental in establishing that the Broncos would not falter in the red zone, as they did last week.

Although McGahee averaged only 3.6 yards a carry, his carries were important in establishing ball control and in limiting Orton's pass attempts.

Run Defense

I know Cedric Benson isn't the best of backs. I know Benson had a mediocre year in 2010, averaging just 3.5 yards a carry.

However, this was absolutely essential in order for Denver to gain this victory.

If Andy Dalton and Benson both went off, Denver would have been in trouble.

Benson had 16 carries for 59 yards. Any time you limit a running back to under four yards a carry, it's an accomplishment.

Denver forced a rookie QB to throw the football 41 times. Yes, it gave up many big plays. Yes, it gave up 332 yards passing.

However, shutting down Benson put the Bengals in a predictable passing attack. It also kept a Denver defense lacking depth fresh.

It's common sense that battling in the trenches wears a defense down more so than playing the pass. That was the case today.

Had Denver gotten dominated in the trenches as it did last week against Oakland, there would have been no chance for a victory.

Von Miller

Von Miller was the clear leader of the Broncos defense on Sunday.

Miller may be a rookie, he may only be 22 years of age, but he played like a veteran against the Bengals.

Miller may have had only three tackles, but he was constantly around the ball.

If your star LB is creating pressure off the edge and is creating space for the other players on the defense to make tackles in the running back, you're doing your job.

Miller also had a sack on Dalton.

As the season progresses, Miller should make his statement in becoming the leader of the Broncos defense.

The Emergence of Eric Decker

I wrote about how Denver needed playmakers. It needed somebody to step up on offense. With Brandon Lloyd out, it was an absolute necessity.

Eric Decker did just that.

Decker proved to be Denver's player of the game. He had five catches for 113 yards and two TDs. He had TD grabs of 52 and 25 yards.

How's that for stepping up?

Decker was able to get open consistently. Even when he wasn't open, he adjusted his position to catch the football.

On his TD grab of 52 yards, Decker wasn't open by any means. The ball was a little bit under-thrown. Nonetheless, Decker adjusted to the ball by coming back to it and ended up sprinting for the touchdown.

If Denver is to be an efficient offense, Decker needs to play like he did against the Bengals.