DENVER – The Denver Broncos were really good in 2013. They were 13-3, didn’t lose any regular-season game by more than a touchdown, outscored teams by 207 points and won the AFC. They ultimately weren’t Super Bowl champion good, partially because they ran up against a great team that was even better, but they were very good last season. The Broncos are better this season. Clearly. Absolutely. “Oh yeah,” cornerback Chris Harris said without any hesitation when asked if the 2014 Broncos were better than the 2013 version. “We’re a total team.” [Join FanDuel.com's $2.5M Week 8 fantasy league: $25 to enter; top 21,905 teams paid] The Broncos are the best team in football right now, by a wide margin. They’ve gone from a team with a historic offense and a so-so defense to a team with an even better offense on paper and a stellar defense. The Broncos gave up 61 yards rushing on Thursday night in a 35-21 win over the San Diego Chargers, and 23 of those yards came on the last play. They forced Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers into two interceptions. The offense was as good as ever, with a 100-yard rusher (Ronnie Hillman), two 100-yard receivers (Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas) and a quarterback who might win a sixth MVP award (you know who). Hold on, hold on. Fine, the Broncos are 6-1 and the best team in the NFL … right now. That doesn’t mean they’ll win the Super Bowl, and the postseason failures of the past two seasons - and of quarterback Peyton Manning most seasons in his career - follow them around everywhere. This great football they’re playing in October means nothing if they come up short of a championship again. Broncos defensive tackle Terrance Knighton wasn’t afraid to express that when asked if the Broncos are better this season. “We’ll see, we’ll see. If we hoist the trophy, then yes. If not, then no,” Knighton said. “It’s that simple. There’s nothing else we can do but win the Super Bowl. If we’re not hoisting that trophy at the end, then we’ll feel let down.” The good news for the Broncos is they should hoist that trophy. This is a much different team than the one that played in the Super Bowl last year. Between free agency and adding players back from injured reserve, the Broncos added seven top-flight starters this offseason. That's something very few teams in the NFL can pull off, yet the second-best team in the league last season did it. The major free-agent additions are all playing as expected. Cornerback Aqib Talib broke up two passes, including a brilliant one on a deep pass down the middle to Malcom Floyd. Defensive end DeMarcus Ware didn’t record any sacks on Thursday, but he drew a 10-yard illegal hands to the face penalty on a pass rush and has seven sacks this season. Strong safety T.J. Ward is one reason the Broncos allow the fewest rushing yards per game in the NFL. Sanders has proven to be an upgrade over Eric Decker; he had three touchdown catches against San Diego. View photo .Von Miller (USA Today Sports Images) Von Miller (USA Today Sports Images) The stars who returned from season-ending injuries have stepped right back in. Left tackle Ryan Clady is part of a great line that led Hillman’s 109-yard effort and didn’t allow a sack. Outside linebacker Von Miller is back to being one of the NFL’s best defensive players. He had a sack for the sixth consecutive game and leads the NFL with nine sacks. Underrated cornerback Chris Harris, Pro Football Focus’ eighth ranked cornerback last year based on the site’s grades, ranked third in the NFL before Thursday’s game. All seven of those players have either been to a Pro Bowl or are capable of playing at that level, were added to a team coming off an AFC championship. And it shows. If the Broncos can maintain this level on both sides of the ball and win a Super Bowl, this team has a chance to go down as one of the all-time greats. The running game has picked up. The passing game is unbelievably deep. The run defense is statistically the best in the league. The pass rush is led by Miller and Ware, who are on pace for more than 36 sacks. The secondary is no joke either. “We have an identity already,” Harris said. “We’re going to stop the run, and then you all are going to have to come out and try to throw at me and Talib, and it’s going to be a long day when you have to do that.” Rod Smith and Shannon Sharpe were hanging out in the locker room long after Thursday night's game ended. Smith, the Broncos’ all-time leading receiver, said he was impressed most with this team’s offensive and defensive lines, something that doesn’t get much attention with the stars elsewhere on the team. He also marveled at how multiple the offense is, and how great the quarterback is playing. “Peyton is ridiculous right now,” Smith said, shaking his head. There’s another thing Smith has noticed that’s big for most championship teams: chemistry.

• published: 24 Oct 2014
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