The first quarter of the 2016 season is in the books, and the Denver Broncos are sitting comfortably atop the AFC West with an unblemished 4-0 record.

The Broncos face perhaps their biggest challenge of 2016 on Sunday when the high-flying Atlanta Falcons come to Mile High Stadium for the first time since Halloween 2004 and for their first meeting since 2012.

There is plenty of talk around Denver that these Broncos could realistically run the table right into Houston for another shot at a Lombardi, but defeating the Falcons will not be light work.

A loss this weekend could also have the Broncos looking over their shoulders because at 3-1, the Oakland Raiders are hot on their heels.

Quarterback Matt Ryan leads the NFL in passing yards through five weeks, but he could very well be the next member of the quarterback graveyard the Broncos have established over the last few months.

The new-and-improved Raiders are taking on the 1-3 San Diego Chargers on Sunday, a game they should easily win. If Matt Ryan manages to do the seemingly impossible and get the better of the Broncos defense and the Raiders win, Denver takes a temporary backseat behind Oakland for at least the week.

Could it be that the Raiders have finally overcome their Super Bowl hangover from 2002? Oakland has shown signs of life in recent years and the Broncos experienced it first hand in 2015 when Khalil Mack sacked then quarterback Brock Osweiler four times in one half on the way to a 15-12 loss.

The Broncos shouldn’t have any problems winning the AFC West for the sixth year in a row, but a loss to the Falcons on Sunday would certainly make things a little more interesting, at least for the moment.

As far as the Falcons go, the Broncos will have their hands full will with the Matt Ryan-Julio Jones combination. But just as we’ve seen so many times before, when a high-flying offense and a stout defense meet, the offense doesn’t usually come out on the right side of things (see Super Bowls XLVIII and 50).

The Broncos should come out of the regular season with their sixth straight AFC West title, but I’m sure no other team would love to spoil an accomplishment like that for the Denver Broncos more than the Oakland Raiders.

Who doesn’t love a little bit of drama?

If anything, Sunday’s game spices up an otherwise routine Week 5 matchup between two inter-conference opponents.

This season hasn’t been nearly as wild as the last, but the show has really just begun.