DENVER – The smoke machine that marks victories in Sean Payton's “Club Dub” unleashed chaos as the Broncos picked up their fifth win in their last six games on Sunday.

Just before Payton entered an auditorium to address reporters after Denver's 28-14 win over the lifeless Carolina Panthers at Empower Field at Mile High, the fire alarm sounded, triggered by celebrations in the locker room. The noise had stopped by the time the Broncos head coach walked to the lectern, but the bright white lights of the alarm system were still flashing.

The scene turned out to fit perfectly with the theme of Payton's postgame press conference, which he essentially used to deliver a clear, stern warning to his team: Things are about to get a lot harder.

“We’re going to see a lot better teams,” Payton said. “It’s just the truth.”

#BroncosCountry LIVE: HC Sean Payton meets with the media afterwards #CARvsDEN https://t.co/ht0xTYboEn

– Denver Broncos (@Broncos) October 27, 2024

Let's start here: The Broncos are 5-3, their best record through eight games since 2016. Four of their five wins this season have come by at least 14 points, while none of their losses have been by more than a touchdown. If the season ended Sunday night, the Broncos would be the fifth seed in the AFC playoffs and would face the Pittsburgh Steelers and their old pal Russell Wilson in the first round. A team that many outsiders predicted would win no more than the five games it has already secured in 2024 appears to be ahead of schedule.

But if the Broncos really want this season to go anywhere — if they want to reach the postseason for the first time in nine years — the internal standard will have to continue to rise as the schedule intensifies. Next up for the Broncos are back-to-back road games against the perennial AFC powers. The first is a trip to Baltimore to face the Ravens next Sunday. That's followed by a game against the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, where the Broncos haven't won in nine years.

“These next two weeks will define us,” Broncos left guard Ben Powers said, “so we’re all looking forward to the challenge.”

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Bo Nix's career day gives the Broncos a 28-14 win over the Panthers

Payton comes from the Bill Parcells coaching school, where the curriculum dictates that there are times to push teams harder after wins than after losses. There was a lot to like on Denver's stat sheet on Sunday, even if it was produced against the worst team in the NFL. The Broncos scored 28 straight points after giving up a touchdown on the opening drive. They converted nine of their first ten third-down attempts. Rookie quarterback Bo Nix set career highs in passing touchdowns (three), passing yards (284) and completion percentage (75.7) while also adding his fourth rushing touchdown of the season. He became the first Broncos quarterback to win five starts as a rookie and also went a fifth game this season without throwing an interception.

“For a rookie quarterback, these are all steps — steps toward confidence,” Payton said. “We saw it. The key is around him. Are we good enough in these other positions around him? We are constantly working on this. We have to paint the picture. If we do that, we will succeed. We’re going to move the ball.”

Courtland Sutton had his first 100-yard receiving game since Week 2 of the 2022 season. Tight end Adam Trautman had a career-best 85 yards on four catches, including a one-handed grab into the back of the end zone midway through the second quarter. Nate Adkins caught his first career touchdown pass, part of an outstanding day for a tight end room that had been one of the NFL's least productive rooms entering Sunday's game.

“It’s a good thing my gloves were sticky today.” 😅

Adam Trautman explains his one-handed TD: pic.twitter.com/CGbzxxh4og

– Denver Broncos (@Broncos) October 28, 2024

Defensively, the Broncos intercepted Bryce Young twice (Pat Surtain II, Ja'Quan McMillian), sacked him twice (Jonathon Cooper, Nik Bonitto) and held the Panthers to a combined 6 of 18 on third and fourth downs. The special teams Unit hit a punt at the 1-yard line for the fourth time this season, tying the mark for most such plays by an NFL team in a season since at least 2000, according to TruMedia.

However, Payton was much more concerned after the game about some of the mistakes the Broncos made and the chances they left open. Or to put it more simply, he lamented the things that will cause the Broncos a loss when they happen against teams that don't wear Panthers uniforms.

“The most important thing is that their expectations can’t be lower than mine,” Payton said. “I told them, ‘We’re going to play bigger games than this. In bigger games than this, some of these mistakes will cost us dearly. “We have to deal with them. … We’re still not playing our best football.”

Payton was frustrated by two turnovers – fumbles by wide receivers Lil'Jordan Humphrey and Sutton. Humphrey's first came on Denver's third play. It gave Young, a struggling quarterback playing without some of his best offensive weapons, a chance to gain early confidence. He completed all five of his passes on the first drive after recovering a fumble for 39 yards and a touchdown to rookie wide receiver Xavier Legette. Sutton's fumble came as he attempted to cross the goal line in the fourth quarter. He complained about a running game (102 yards on 32 carries) that wasn't efficient enough. When asked to rate Trautman's career day, Payton initially shared that he was “upset” because Trautman called an illegal formation penalty late in the game.

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The Broncos weathered those problems easily against a one-win team that was en route to the top of the NFL Draft order. These mistakes could make the difference compared to the upcoming schedule, which also includes a home game on November 17th against the NFC South leaders Falcons.

“I'm never against a coach coming after us because we want to get better,” said Powers, who played his first four seasons with the Ravens and knows the test the Broncos face when they travel to Baltimore next week . “It means they care. If they didn’t care, they wouldn’t do it.”

The Broncos are firmly in the playoff hunt. The limit should be 10 wins. Since the schedule expanded to 17 games in 2021, no AFC team that has reached that mark has missed the playoffs. Meanwhile, seven of the eight teams that finished 9-8 missed the playoffs. So from here it's a five-minute drive to Denver.

But getting involved isn't the internal expectation – at least not the one Payton wants his team to have. The Broncos have already far exceeded what most underdogs expected at this point in the season, but that will mean little if they don't continue to climb from here.

“We know we still have a lot left in the tank, a lot to improve,” Surtain said. “That’s the best thing about this team. We still have a lot ahead of us that we want to prove.”

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(Photo of Bo Nix scoring a rushing touchdown on Sunday: C. Morgan Engel / Getty Images)