ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — What's stoking the Denver Broncos' surprising surge is the growing connection between rookie quarterback Bo Nix and veteran wide receiver Courtland Sutton.
Whenever the Broncos (7-5) need a clutch catch, a key flag or a timely touchdown, Sutton is usually the one delivering it like he did Sunday when he caught eight passes on 10 targets for 97 yards and a pair of touchdowns that sparked the Broncos' come-from-behind 29-19 win at Las Vegas.
“Courtland played tremendous,” coach Sean Payton said.
Again.
“He’s just reliable,” Nix said. “He's just always there when you need him.”
Sutton's size (6-foot-4 and 216 pounds) and experience (he's in his seventh NFL season) make him an ideal target and safety valve for the rookie QB whose confidence is growing by the week.
“He’s smart. He’s savvy. He makes plays when the ball’s in the air,” Nix said. “You can trust him. When it’s up in the air, it’s his or nobody’s. It’s not going to be a pick.”
Nix's first touchdown toss to Sutton was an 18-yarder that allowed the QB to break Marlin Briscoe's 1968 Denver rookie record of 14 TD passes, and the two connected again with 5:30 left to make it a two-score game.
The Broncos trailed 13-9 at halftime and Nix said they knew they had to get the ball into Sutton's hands more in the second half after he had caught the only pass thrown his way in the first half (for 17 yards).
“Didn’t target him (much) in the first half,” Nix said. “We come out and say, ‘Look, Courtland, this is your half.’ We take over the game. He goes for two touchdowns. That just kind of speaks for what he means to our team.”
Sutton has been on a tear after since he wasn't targeted a single time in Denver's 33-10 win at New Orleans on Oct. 17. (Payton mentioned as recently as last week what an anomaly that game was because there was a heavy diet of plays for Sutton that just didn't pan out for various reasons.)
In his six games before that goose egg, Sutton had 21 catches on 49 targets for 277 yards and a touchdown. In the five games since, he's caught 36 of the 48 balls thrown his way for 467 yards and three TDs. Plus, he threw a touchdown pass to Nix on a “Philly Special” at Baltimore in Week 9.
“I think we're just scratching the surface,” Sutton said.
Thanks in part to the chemistry between Nix and Sutton, the Broncos are in position for the seventh and final playoff spot entering December.
The passing game, thanks to the Nix-Sutton connection.
The running game. Javonte Williams had just 2 yards on eight carries and Audric Estime ran three times for 15 yards against the Raiders' run-heavy fronts and a steady diet of blitzes. Jaleel McLaughlin saved the day with seven carries for 44 yards.
OLB Nik Bonitto. His 10 sacks make him the first Denver defender with double-digit sacks since 2018, when Von Miller did it.
Once again, the Broncos' special teams, with the exception of K Wil Lutz, who hasn't missed a field goal attempt or extra point since his protection unit cratered at Kansas City three weeks ago and allowed the Chiefs to block what would have been the game-winning kick as time expired. On Sunday, the Raiders had a successful fake punt and a 59-yard kickoff return.
Payton isn't saying much about the injuries to DE Zach Allen (heel) and CB Riley Moss (knee) except that to him they're not serious setbacks for either player.
2 — The Broncos are two games above .500 for the first time since starting the 2021 season with three wins.
The Broncos host Cleveland (3-8) on Monday night ahead of their bye week.
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Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton (14) signals first down against the Las Vegas Raiders during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton pulls in a touchdown pass as Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Jack Jones (18) defends during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Decamerion Richardson (25) collides with Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton (14) for a penalty during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton (14) pulls in a touchdown pass against the Las Vegas Raiders during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri court on Monday upheld a new state law that bans some gender-affirming health care for minors, a victory for supporters of the ban as a multitude of lawsuits against similar bans in other states continue to play out.
Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey said in a statement that Missouri is the “first state in the nation to successfully defend such a law at the trial court level.” Bailey, who tried to ban minors’ access to gender-affirming health care through rule change but dropped the effort when the law passed, is responsible for defending the legislation in court.
“I’m extremely proud of the thousands of hours my office put in to shine a light on the lack of evidence supporting these irreversible procedures," Bailey said. "We will never stop fighting to ensure Missouri is the safest state in the nation for children.”
Every major medical organization, including the American Medical Association, has opposed the bans on gender-affirming care for minors and supported the medical care for youth when administered appropriately.
Lambda Legal and the ACLU of Missouri, which are representing the plaintiffs who sued to overturn the law, on Monday said they will appeal the ruling.
Missouri is among at least 26 states that have adopted laws restricting or banning gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors.
Federal judges have struck down the bans in Arkansas and Florida as unconstitutional, though a federal appeals court has stayed the Florida ruling. A judge’s orders is in place temporarily blocking enforcement of the ban in Montana. New Hampshire restrictions are to take effect in January 2025.
The Missouri law banned gender-affirming surgeries for children and teenagers under the age of 18, as well as hormones and puberty blockers for minors who had not started those treatments as of August 2023. The law expires in August 2027.
These treatments are accepted by major medical groups as evidence-based care that transgender people should be able to access.
Most adults still are allowed to access gender-affirming health care under the Missouri law, but Medicaid won’t cover it.
The plaintiffs, including family of several teenagers who are transgender, argued the law takes away medically necessary treatments from transgender minors while still allowing other children to access similar surgeries and medications.
Wright County Circuit Court Judge Craig Carter disagreed. In his ruling, the southern Missouri judge wrote that he believes there's “an almost total lack of consensus as to the medical ethics of adolescent gender dysphoria treatment.”
“The evidence at trial showed severe disagreement as to whether adolescent gender dysphoria drug and surgical treatment was ethical at all, and if so, what amount of treatment was ethically allowable,” Carter wrote.
Lambda Legal and the ACLU of Missouri in a statement said the ruling signals that "for some, compassion and equal access to health care are still out of reach.”
"The court’s findings signal a troubling acceptance of discrimination, ignore an extensive trial record and the voices of transgender Missourians and those who care for them, and deny transgender adolescents and Medicaid beneficiaries from their right to access to evidence-based, effective, and often life-saving medical care,” the organizations said.
The states that have passed laws restricting or banning gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors include: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming.
FILE - People applaud during a rally in favor of legislation banning gender-affirming healthcare for minors, Monday, March 20, 2023, at the Missouri Statehouse in Jefferson City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
FILE - People applaud during a rally in favor of legislation banning gender-affirming healthcare for minors, Monday, March 20, 2023, at the Missouri Statehouse in Jefferson City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
FILE - Julia Williams holds a sign in counterprotest during a rally in favor of a ban on gender-affirming health care legislation, Monday, March 20, 2023, at the Missouri Statehouse in Jefferson City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
FILE - Supporters of a resolution that would make Kansas City, Mo, a sanctuary city for transgender people celebrate outside of city council chambers after a committee approved the resolution, sending it to the full council for consideration, Wednesday, May 10, 2023, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)
