The Mile High Report’s Ian St. Clair joins us for his second weekly feature for DenverBroncosUK.com.
In Sunday’s win over the Seattle Seahawks, seeing the offence making big plays should give Broncos fans confidence we have yet to see what this offense is capable of. Even though Denver won, moved the ball, had balance and made big plays, it can still get better. As the season progresses, that is what teams look for, and heading into Week Two against the Oakland Raiders, the Broncos have that with their offense.
Clutch Keenum?
When Denver needed him to step up, Case Keenum delivered the game-winning drive and touchdown. That’s despite throwing three interceptions and putting his team in a bad spot. Keenum knows he has to play better and make better decisions with the ball. But what shows me he will rebound against Oakland is the offensive line and running game. Those factors take the focus off Keenum and put him in a situation to succeed. I’m excited to see how he responds on Sunday.
Miller leading the way
Von Miller sets the tone for the defense. What players like Miller do is make everyone else better, and not just on defense. When they see a player shine like that, the competitor in them wants to match it. In terms of the defense, Miller forces teams to focus on him, and that gives his teammates more chances to make an impact on the game.
Bradley Chubb and Miller open up more opportunities for each other, and the Orange Rush as a whole. When you have two, three or even four guys who get sustained pressure you can’t block them all. Now that Miller has had his strong Week One, that will free up Chubb to make plays on Sunday. The Orange Rush should have a huge game again
Same old problems
The poor coverage of tight ends seems to be the biggest threat for this defense, and I don’t see them fixing it in one week; especially when you consider this has been a problem for what seems like this entire century. Perhaps the only way to ensure Cook doesn’t go off, is not give Derek Carr time to throw it to him. Get consistent pressure and hit Carr repeatedly.
The unpredictable AFC West
If the Broncos are able to take what they did against Seattle and eliminate the turnovers, they should win this game. But the great thing about rivalry games is you never know what to expect. In the 116th edition of this classic NFL rivalry, it’s best to expect the unexpected.
That said, I’m predicting a 31-13 victory for the Broncos.
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