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Broncos

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Author Topic: Broncos  (Read 705 times)
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« Reply #15 on: September 30, 2013, 09:42:10 am »

From ESPN Insider.


While the Seattle Seahawks have the best home-field advantage of any team in the NFL, the Denver Broncos clearly have the second-best. Their advantage mostly stems from the lack of oxygen due to the high altitude, but combining that with Peyton Manning's up-tempo, no-huddle offense has made the Broncos look unbeatable at home. This team is built to play at Mile High, and that's why it's so important for Denver to secure home-field advantage for the playoffs.

Let's take a look at what makes Denver's offense so potent and which AFC contenders are best suited to defend Manning's attack.

As it shows week after week no matter the opponent, Manning's offense can simply play any style of game and dictate the flow and tempo of the game. He has seen it all, never forgets what he has processed and doesn't panic. He has a rare mind for the game to know when to speed things up and when to slow them down. The Broncos, unlike his old Indianapolis Colts offenses, use a much wider group of skill position players, as well as personnel groups and formations. They rotate skill players in, which of course helps to keep them fresh in the high altitude.

Denver has no problem putting a high-end player like Eric Decker or Julius Thomas on the bench and is presently using a three-man running back rotation. The Broncos throw a ton at opponents and Manning doesn't have a favorite target, instead regularly going to the player or play call that has the best mismatch in Denver's favor.

During the Mike Shanahan era in Denver, the Broncos always had one of the league's smallest and most athletic offensive lines. Those athletes up front were perfect for Shanahan's zone blocking scheme and the added bonus was those smaller offensive linemen didn't get as tired in the Denver altitude as heavier big men. Presently, Denver doesn't have a particularly small or overly athletic line, but instead has a well-conditioned and powerful group. Because the linemen are well-conditioned to their home city and Manning's offense, they use power rather than finesse late in games to put away the opposition. And that means the Broncos can run the ball late to put away games if needed as well.

Manning will also force defenses to be in their stance a long time before the snap as he goes through his antics. Staying in your stance as a defensive lineman while preparing to explode out of it is tiring, and Manning's offensive linemen are much more accustomed to holding their stance that long. Manning is also a master at luring defenders offside with cadence. None of this is an accident. And it also isn't an accident that the Broncos are undefeated at home or that they have consistently pulled away from their opponents in the second half. Sunday was a great example, as Denver had only an eight-point lead at halftime. But early in the second half, the Eagles looked like a demoralized defense and were no longer competitive against the league's best offense.

Denver entered Sunday's game as the NFL's best run defense. Philadelphia and its unique rushing attack had success and the Eagles were able to keep up with Denver in the time of possession category early on; this isn't the norm for the Broncos. Shutting down the run is key for Denver and greatly complements the Broncos' massive home-field advantage, making the opponent's job of keeping Manning on the sidelines that much more difficult. The Broncos feature an oversized four-man defensive line that is much better against the run than pass with extremely active and speedy linebackers on the second level. They rotate their defensive line, which is imperative at home, but the linebackers are built for thin air. The Broncos, when fully healthy, also feature a very deep secondary and they are not afraid to use lighter sub packages, which again helps with fatigue issues. The Broncos are a very good man-to-man defense and their linebackers can run with opposing running backs or tight ends.

As we saw today, teams that like to speed things up on offense should be reluctant to do so in Denver. The Eagles played very slow on offense Sunday compared to what they usually do. If offenses choose to play hurry-up and are unable to sustain offense consistently, especially if the run game is unsuccessful, then the offense could go three-and-out without taking very much time off the clock -- a huge disadvantage for an opposition's defense.

Is there a defense or two out there that could slow this group down? The short answer is no, as I truly believe that Manning has seen it all, and is just exceptionally tough to beat in Denver. But, because Manning is no threat as a runner, a team that excels in press man coverage could at least disrupt the timing of this passing attack without fear of turning its back on the quarterback. Seattle immediately comes to mind in this regard. I like Richard Sherman's chances against Demaryius Thomas, the Broncos' most difficult receiver to defend. A big, physical strong safety like Kam Chancellor could also hold his own against Julius Thomas. Divisional rival Kansas City also could fit this mold, with Brandon Flowers playing the role of Sherman and Eric Berry matching up well with Thomas. The Chiefs' front seven would make running very difficult as well. But as much as I like Flowers, he is clearly a step below Sherman.

While the Broncos have a fantastic home-field advantage, I do have a concern. And surprisingly, that concern is Manning. I thought Manning looked old and cold in Denver's home playoff loss last season. Of course he wasn't far removed from his neck procedures and could have been fatigued from a long season, but Denver's great signal-caller is far from a young man. Denver also can have the most snow of any of the NFL cities and Manning's only real weakness in my opinion is his arm strength. Driving the ball through difficult conditions is not his specialty, as seen in several playoff clashes with the New England Patriots over the years.

In the ideal situation, the Broncos steamroll through the regular season and secure home-field advantage throughout the playoffs -- which I expect them to accomplish. And once that happens, only a team that can play solid man-to-man press coverage and score enough to keep up with Manning will have a chance. This offense is playing at an unbelievable pace now and right now no one wants to travel to Denver in the playoffs.
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