The Denver Broncos (3-0, First Place AFC West) are getting set to take on the Dallas Cowboys (2-1, Second Place NFC East) in what figures to be one of the top matchups in the fourth week of the NFL season.

Dallas is fresh off a dominant 21-7 victory over fellow NFC opponent Carolina, and the Broncos are still soaking in a 23-3 crushing of their bitter rival Oakland Raiders. 

The last time these two teams met was four years ago on a Thanksgiving night game on NFL Network, when Ron Dayne propelled the Broncos to one of their 13 victories with a big run in overtime to set up a Jason Elam field goal.

This early season contest features two of the NFL’s top rushing offenses, one of which could be without its centerpiece. Marion Barber, the Cowboys’ power back and Pro Bowl performer could be out when Dallas travels to Invesco Field at Mile High next Sunday afternoon, but do not expect the Cowboys to veer away from their running game.

Dallas is currently ranked first in the NFL in rushing, averaging an astounding 193.7 yards per game thanks to its trio of Barber, Felix Jones, and Tashard Choice. But the offensive power does not end at the running game. Quarterback Tony Romo has led this offense to roughly 430 yards per contest, averaging nearly 29 points in their first three games.

What Dallas does not have so far is a great pass rush, which seems odd considering they boast the league’s returning leader in sacks, DeMarcus Ware. In fact, until last night, the Cowboys did not have a sack or a turnover defensively.

The Broncos hope to bring out those apparent flaws in Dallas’ defense with their top-tier offensive line, led by All-Pro left tackle Ryan Clady, who has yet to surrender a sack in his young NFL career. His tremendous play could force Ware to other positions on the field in order to have any kind of impact.

While the Broncos do not appear to be a pass-heavy offense, quarterback Kyle Orton has been nothing but efficient and mistake-free for his first three games as a Denver Bronco, throwing three touchdown passes and no interceptions so far. Orton has been labeled a “game manager” throughout his career, and my question is “When did that become a bad thing?”

Orton and the Broncos are off to a hot 3-0 start, one that has been aided by the play of Denver’s new-look defense. Although it is early, the Bronco defense is on pace to be the best this franchise has ever seen, allowing only 16 points through their first three games, best in the NFL so far. They also have held opponents to an average of 214.7 yards per game, which also ranks first in the league.

The dominance of the Denver defense combined with the league’s fourth-ranked rushing attack has really paved the way for the Broncos, who are considered by many to be a surprise and quite frankly are not getting the national decorum they deserve.

Denver is ranked 13th in ESPN’s newest edition of “Power Rankings,” but even lead AFC West blogger Bill Williamson, who has been fairly skeptical if not critical of Denver throughout this offseason, agrees that the Broncos are a top 10 team.

Personally, I hope the Broncos stay under the radar. Teams can keep underestimating them and, not coincidentally, they will continue losing to them. 

I read an interesting line on Mike Florio’s blog at Pro Football Talk, where he said this: 

“Last week, some were calling the Broncos the worst 2-0 team in league history.

“Now, some are calling them the worst 3-0 team in league history.

“The way they’re going, they’ve got a chance to end up being something other than the worst 5-0 team in league history, too.”

How could that not be more true? People hopped off the Denver bandwagon the second Jay Cutler was traded, if they weren’t already trailing far behind when Mike Shanahan was fired. It is too easy to fear or doubt the unknown, but Josh McDaniels has this team believing, and it shows.

This is by no means a guarantee that the Broncos will beat the Cowboys, because, after last night, I realized that the Cowboys can be a fantastic team when they want to be. Which brings me to the next myth that needs debunking, which is that the Broncos have played three “easy” opponents so far.

Orton was quick to shoot down the fact that Dallas will be the Broncos’ first real test of the season, saying he has “never played an easy game in the NFL.” It is very easy, as NFL fans in this generation to look at a team like Cincinnati, the team of “Hark Knocks,” and honestly say they are a team that is worth playing in the NFL.

Well, two weeks after the “Immaculate Deflection,” the Cincinnati Bengals are looking like a team on the rise, having beaten Green Bay on the road and the reigning Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers at home on a come-from-behind victory that included two fourth-down conversions on their final drive.

The Cleveland Browns have been abysmal this year, but how did anyone know they would be 0-3 when they played the Broncos? Cleveland fans, on this site at least, seemed to have hope if not confidence that their team would come into Denver and get a victory. 

Then came the Oakland Raiders, and their fans need no explanation. Ever since Week 12 of last season, Raider fans have been licking their chops to host the Broncos again, and many fans and analysts predicted them to get a win at home against the Broncos, who were supposed to be a team in disarray. A near shutout on the road has still not silenced the critics, though they are at least backing down a little.

John Clayton predicted at the beginning of the season that Denver would win three games, and that “Denver rookie head coach Josh McDaniels doesn’t have a grasp on how to build a team.”

He said that prior to the NFL Draft, and look who is laughing now, at least for the time being. Other than trading Cutler, the Broncos made a bevy of offseason moves to improve their team, which Clayton apparently failed to take into account when assessing McDaniels.

I read a very interesting piece on Mile High Report, a Broncos blog, about the effectiveness of the offseason moves Denver has made, and how they correlate to some of the more expensive, alternative options that potentially could have silenced the critics.

If the Broncos lose to the Cowboys, you can certainly expect the “haters” and “nay-sayers” to be in full form once again, but this Denver team certainly appears to be one to be reckoned with.

Check back on Thursday or Friday for my Keys to Victory for Denver!

Read more Denver Broncos news on BleacherReport.com

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