The New England Patriots (6-2) continued their hot streak last Sunday afternoon when they won their fourth game in a row against the Chicago Bears at Gillette Stadium. In a 51-23 blowout, Tom Brady only threw five incomplete passes while passing for 354 yards and five touchdowns. Since the loss to the Chiefs, Brady has thrown 14 touchdowns to zero interceptions over the course of this streak. As for the defense, New England forced two turnovers against Jay Cutler, which included an interception to end the first have by Darrelle Revis and a fumble recovery for a touchdown by Rob Ninkovich.
The NFL Trade Deadline too place this week and while the high-profiled names of Bucs’ wide receiver Vincent Jackson and running back Doug Martin were floated out there, the Patriots made a trade with Tampa Bay for linebacker Jonathan Casillas. In addition to Casillas, the Patriots got a sixth round pick in exchange for their fifth round pick. Casillas hasn’t played since Week 3, but the Patriots at least improved their depth in the front seven, which was a huge need. That sets the stage heading into this weekend as everyone gets set for the biggest game of the season. It is Brady vs. Manning week for the 16th time and the Broncos come in to Gillette Stadium as the best team in the NFL right now.
The Broncos (6-1) haven’t lost a game since their overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks back in Week 3. As usual, Peyton Manning (22 touchdowns and 3 interceptions this season) has the offense clicking on all cylinders as they lead the league with 32 points per game. Even with Montee Ball out since Week 5 with a groin injury, Ronnie Hillman has carried the load on the ground with two 100+ yard rushing games in his last three. We will get to Peyton’s wide receivers and tight end Julius Thomas (nine touchdowns) later on.
This offseason, John Elway and company spent a ton of money on the defensive side of the ball, signing linebacker Demarcus Ware (seven sacks), safety T.J Ward, and cornerback Aqib Talib, who is a former Patriot. Talib returns to Foxboro as Denver’s third leading tackler and second on the team in interceptions with two. This has helped a Broncos’ defense that leads the league in run defense and is fourth in total defense. Denver hasn’t won a game in Foxboro since September 2006, but will Brady vs. Manning change that trend and will it provide us with another instant classic?
Here are my three keys to Sunday’s matchup in Foxboro (4:25 PM ET, CBS):
1. Sticking It To Sanders: Over the last three seasons, the Broncos have been known for their prolific wide receiving corps, which is one of the main reasons why the Patriots brought in Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner to help their secondary. Demaryius Thomas has 767 yards, six touchdowns, and 12 catches of 20 yards or more. Julius Thomas has nine touchdowns, but hasn’t had a score since Week 6 against the Jets. The player I want to talk about is Emmanuel Sanders.
Sanders, who some thought would be a Patriot during the offseason, has been an excellent addition for the Broncos. Sanders is tied with Demaryius Thomas for the team lead in receptions (47) and has five games of six or more catches this season. He had his breakout game last Thursday against the Chargers, when he caught nine passes for 120 yards and three touchdowns. Who on the Patriots is going to cover Sanders in this one. Could it be Alfonzo Dennard, Logan Ryan, or Kyle Arrington with Revis and Browner likely covering other weapons, including former Patriot Wes Welker. Sanders is going to make a difference in this game one way or another with his four games of 100+ yards receiving this season.
2. Back Up The Von: Two of Denver’s key players on defense were not active during last season’s AFC Championship Game that the Broncos won 26-16. Those two players were cornerback Chris Harris and linebacker Von Miller. Miller has nine sacks this season and has recorded a sack in every game since the season opener against the Colts. Miller played an impact in last season’s regular season matchup when he had eight tackles, two sacks, and a forced fumble. Denver’s defense has 23 sacks, which is sixth in the NFL and two ahead of the New England Patriots.
As usual, it is going to be difficult for the Patriots to sack Peyton Manning when you consider that Manning has only been taken down eight times this season, but four times in the last three games. Last week, the Patriots’ defense had three sacks against Jay Cutler. This week, the question will be whether or not the additions of Revis and Browner can create a coverage sack or two for this defense. Bill Belichick’s defensive unit will need the continued contributions of Akeem Ayers, Zach More, and Dominique Easley that they got last week. If the Patriots can’t at least get pressure on Manning, it will be tough to hold their offense to under 30 points.
3. Skies Are Not As Gray In the Pats’ Backfield: When I take a look at this matchup, one of the keys for the Patriots in this game has to be to keep Peyton Manning and the Broncos under 30 points. To do that, the Patriots need to win the battle in terms of time of possession. Last week, New England had another player emerge out of the backfield with the absence of Stevan Ridley. Jonas Gray, the undrafted rookie out of Notre Dame, ran for 86 yards on 17 carries against the Chicago Bears. If you add in the three carries he had against the Jets, Gray has rushed for about five yards per carry in two games.
It is a small sample size, but New England needs Gray and Vereen to control the clock and give Brady manageable third downs where he can find Gronkowski and LaFell in the short passing game. It will be a tall order for the Patriots, however, when you consider the Broncos are the best team in the NFL at stopping the run with players such as Terrence Knighton in the middle of the defensive line.
PREDICTION
Last week, the Patriots saw the emergence of a healthy Rob Gronkowski when he caught nine passes for 149 yards and three touchdowns. If you throw in Brandon LaFell’s 11 catches and Brady now has reliable targets other than Julian Edelman. That’s one of the main reasons why Brady has 14 touchdowns to zero interceptions in his last four games. Gronk is a matchup nightmare for the Broncos, but Julius Thomas is going to give the Patriots issues as well. With the weather being cold and maybe some snow on Sunday afternoon, this is the kind of game where, historically, Peyton Manning has struggled.
As I said earlier, the Patriots need to hold the Broncos under 30 points to have a great chance to win his game, which has only happened to Denver twice this year (1-1). Ronnie Hillman is running the ball well at the moment and the Patriots’ issues on run defense have been well documented. Heading into this game, you have to say these are the two best teams in the AFC and we could be looking at yet another rematch in the AFC Playoffs.
That being said, after the two teams made their moves in the offseason, it seemed like the Broncos came up with the better moves and look to be the better team right now. Without Jerod Mayo and Chandler Jones, it’s a tall order to ask this Patriots’ defense to contain Peyton Manning. It will be another classic at Foxboro, but Manning finds a way to get the win in a game where points will be scored at a premium.
BRONCOS 31 PATRIOTS 27
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
