Week 14: Broncos vs. Bills

Denver Broncos

Looks like we found a kicker who can actually make a 33 yard field goal.  Connor Barth was a breath of fresh air for those of us who were sick of seeing Brandon McManus miss easy field goal.  Now we have a kicker who can make the easy ones.  The only concern that I had was that his kickoffs were landing at about the five yard line on every kickoff and the Chiefs had great field position throughout the game (although they did nothing with it).  The Broncos took care of this problem by re-signing McManus so he can be the kickoff specialist.  I loved this move because kicking off is actually something that McManus did very well.  He has the fourth best touchback percentage in the NFL (75%).  I also loved this move because it came at the expense of Isiah Burse.  Nothing against Burse but he just wasn't getting the job done in the kick return game, and I was glad to see that the Broncos realized that.  He just tried to hard to make the big play every time instead of getting the yards that were there.  There were several times last week where if he had just taken what the coverage gave him he would have had ten to fifteen yards, but instead he tried to get cute and break a big one and wound up getting a couple yards.  He had the worst average punt return in the NFL, so I was glad to see that the Broncos decided to go in a different direction.  I think the Broncos may look to use Wes Welker as the punt returner now.  They had been reluctant to do so but given his reduced role in the offense they may be more willing to risk using him as  punt returner.  Omar Bolden is another player who could see some time as the punt returner.  He has done a good job returning kickoffs over the past two weeks and I wouldn't be surprised if he saw some action as the punt returner.

Denver Broncos

This week the Broncos have to continue to run the football, and it will be a tough task against a very stout Bills defense.  This week it is important to run the ball to slow down the Bills pass rushers.  They lead the league in sacks, and have three players with double digit sacks. The Bills like to get after the quarterback and force him into mistakes.  If there is one weakness to Peyton Manning's game it is that he does not do well under pressure.  The Broncos need to get C.J. Anderson rolling early to make the Bills pass rushers respect the running game.  If they fail to do so the Bills pass rushers will come after Peyton Manning and cause problems for the Broncos offense.  I have loved seeing the Broncos be so committed to the running game over the last several weeks.  If they can keep producing  like they have been this offense will be one of the most dangerous in the NFL.  One concern that I have had in regards to the running game, is the heavy usage that C.J. Anderson has seen over the last several weeks.  The Broncos need to manage his carries more so he is fresh for the postseason.  Look for the Broncos to get Juwan Thompson more carries in this one to make sure Anderson is staying fresh.  I would also expect Montee Ball and Ronnie Hillman to get a few carries whenever they come back from injury in the next several weeks, but make no mistake C.J. Anderson is the starter at running back no matter who comes back from injury.

Denver Broncos

In the passing game expect big things from Demaryius Thomas once again.  He has been having a monster season and I think he will continue to have success in this one.  If the Broncos offensive line is able to give Peyton the time he needs look for the Broncos to do a lot of damage through the air.  The weakness of this Bills defense is their secondary, which is hidden because of how great the defensive line is.  Peyton Manning's ability to get rid of the ball quickly should be a big advantage in this game and I expect the Broncos to have a big game through the air.  For some reason this offense is different when they are playing at home.  In six home game the Broncos are averaging just over 35 points per game, as opposed to road game where they are averaging only 24.8 points per game.  Look for the Broncos to get rolling early and score a lot of points in this one.

Denver Broncos

Another good sign from last week was the play of the Denver defense.  They absolutely dominated the Chiefs, and they shut down Jamal Charles which is no easy task.  The biggest change I saw last week was the Broncos willingness to blitz in big moments.  For most of the season the Broncos have been very reluctant to blitz, and have had one of the lowest blitz percentage in the NFL.  Last week that all changed as the Broncos blitzed early and often and they had no problem getting to Alex Smith.  They recorded six sacks in this one and a good number of them were off of a blitz.  One player that I loved blitzing last week was T.J. Ward.  He showed the ability to get to the quarterback and he did a great job of disguising his blitz.  He is a player that I expect to see blitzing more this week as well because that is where he can be really dangerous.  Ward is not a guy that is great in coverage, but he is really good at stuffing the run and getting after the quarterback.

Denver Broncos

Another Bronco that has been really impressive over the past several weeks is Mitch Unrein.  You just can't say enough about a guy who was a huge part of the rotation last year, and this year has been inactive for a good part of the season, and when he got his chance he seized it.  He has been causing havoc in the backfield over the last few weeks since he has been active.  When you watch him he is getting off of blocks and making plays in the backfield.  It has been good to see him take advantage of his playing time and I would expect him to be active the rest of the way.  He is just another playmaker for this very talented defensive line that should continue to cause problems for opponents as the season rolls along.  I expect the defensive line to have another great game shutting down the Bills running game and then getting after our old buddy Kyle Orton.

Prediction

I think this game is going to be close for a couple of quarters because the Bills defense is talented enough to slow down the Broncos offense.  Once the Broncos offense hits a rhythm I think they will begin to pull away from the Bills who have struggled offensively this season.  I expect the Broncos defense to continue their dominance from last week.  It would be nice if this defense could put together several great performances in a row and be clicking on all cylinders entering the playoffs.

Final Score- Denver Broncos 34, Buffalo Bills 16

Week 13: Broncos vs. Chiefs

The Broncos finally found a running game! For the first time this season the Broncos were able to run the ball and not just when the defense allowed them to do so.  They ran the ball against the Dolphins when they knew the Broncos were going to run the football.  That is the biggest difference that you could see in this game.  When the Broncos went for it on 4th and 2 and popped one off for twenty yards, it was a good sign for the Broncos running game.  C.J. Anderson will get most of the credit for the improvement of the running game and deservedly so, he played great and will be the starter for the rest of the season, but enough cannot be said about the offensive line.  They have been attacked all season as the Broncos weakest link, and last week they responded with their best performance of the season.  You could see that they were physically controlling the Dolphins in the running game and the passing game.  If the line is able to maintain their level of play the Broncos offense will be one of the most dangerous and balanced offenses in the league.  Thats the good news.  The bad news is that the Broncos defense struggled to do much of anything in this one and they were consistently beaten by the Dolphins.  One of the most concerning things that I saw was the lack of a consistent pass rush.  Teams are often chipping Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware with a running back or tight end, and making it harder for those two to get to the quarterback.  The Broncos have to be able to generate pass rush in other ways, whether that is blitzing or finding another player who can consistently create pressure.  Keep a close eye on the defense this week to see how they handle the Chiefs in the passing game.

Denver Broncos

Speaking of C.J. Anderson has he been impressive or what?  The Broncos coaching staff finally gave him his shot and he has not disappointed.  He has been great both running the ball and catching the ball.  If the Broncos want to continue to be successful on offense they need to feed Anderson the ball early and often.  Running the ball also had a profound effect on the offensive line.  When the Broncos run the ball it keeps the offensive line aggressive and that is part of the reason that they looked so good last week.  The Broncos also need to stay committed to the running game this week because the Chiefs have one of the worst running games in the NFL.  They are currently ranked 26th in the NFL and they have struggled even more over the last several weeks.  The Raiders managed to run all over the Chiefs last week and I would expect the Broncos to look to do the same.  Another reason I loved the way the Broncos ran the ball is that it set up the pass so perfectly.  For the first time this season the Broncos opponent didn't know if they were going to run the ball or pass the ball.  That meant that Peyton Manning was not under constant pressure when he dropped back to pass, and Peyton looked far more comfortable in the pocket against the Dolphins.  This will be important this week as well as the Broncos face off against a Chiefs pass rush that is very formidable.  Slowing down Tamba Hali and Justin Houston just a little bit could mean the difference between a win and a loss.

Denver Broncos

I am also looking for Demaryius Thomas to continue his torrid pace in this game.  He has been unbelievable this season after a bit of a slow start.  I know he did not reach 100 yards last week but he scored three touchdowns and had ten receptions so I would say he had a pretty good game all in all.  His role will become even bigger if Julius Thomas is unable to go again this week, which is looking more and more likely.  He did not practice again this week and that is usually not a good sign for a players availability on game day.  One player that could benefit from the absence of Julius is Wes Welker who finally got a second touchdown pass last week.  The chiefs will look hard to take away Demaryius and Emmanuel Sanders which means Welker will have plenty of opportunities in this one if he can get open.  Last week he was great on third down and in short yardage situations which is how I would expect the Broncos to use him going forward.  He is not the player that he once was but he can still be a valuable contributor for this Broncos team.

Denver Broncos

One player I would like to see more of this week is Omar Bolden.  Last week he took over kick returning duties and he did a much better job than Andre Caldwell has done at any point this season.  I expect him to keep that job and as long as he continues to perform he could look to take over the punt returner job.  This is something that has been a problem all season.  Isaiah Burse is simply not that special and to be honest I don't know how he managed to secure a roster spot on this team.  Had Jordan Norwood not been injured in the preseason there is not way that Burse is on this team.  Last season we had Trindon Holliday returning punts and he had fumbling issues, but at least he provided the chance for a big play in the return game.  This year Burse has had no big returns and he has had fumbling issues as well, fumbling three times (has only lost one).  The Broncos need to find somebody who can provide decent returns and hold onto the football so Peyton Manning and the offense can at least have a chance.  The special teams have been an issue all season but hopefully things will improve now that Brandon McManus is finally gone.  How he managed to hang around this long is anybody's guess, but I suppose the 33 yard field goal miss was the straw that broke the camels back.  It will be interesting to see how Connor Barth does as the new kicker.  My only concern with him is that he did not play last year so he could be rusty but he must have impressed the Broncos in workouts as he beat out an experienced kicker in Jay Feeley.  Keep an eye on special teams this week as they just need to avoid costly mistakes, which have plagued the special teams unit all season long.

Denver Broncos

If the Broncos hope to win this game they are going to need to see some major improvements from the defense.  They struggled to stop the Dolphins last week, although I will say they made some good halftime adjustments and got big stops when they needed to in the 2nd half.  The dolphins were able to exploit the Broncos run defense, which most teams have not been able to do.  They ran a lot of zone read run in the first half and the Broncos defensive ends were getting sucked to far in and the edge was sealed, which allowed Lamar Miller to break free around the edge.  This week it is very important that they keep Jamal Charles contained, because if he breaks contain you are in for a long day.  He is one of the most dangerous runners once he hits the open field, so the Broncos have to do the best they can to force him to run in between the tackles.  Another key when facing Charles is tackling him as a unit.  He is great at making people miss, so the Broncos have to swarm the football, and gang tackle him so he is unable to use his trademark elusiveness.  I expect the Broncos defense to rebound in this game, but if they do not and they continue to struggle this will be a major concern going forward.

Prediction

This will be a hard fought game and I think the Broncos are going to struggle in this one.  The Chiefs will be playing at home during primetime with some of the loudest fans in the NFL.  I think if the Broncos struggle early they could be in for a very tough night.  They need to come out and score a few touchdowns early to take the crowd out of the game and force the Chiefs to throw the ball.  I think the Broncos should be able to win this game if they execute and avoid turnovers.  Look for a close ball game that will most likely not be decided until the fourth quarter.

Final Score- Denver Broncos 27, Kansas City Chiefs 21