Broncos-Bears Preseason Opener: Game Thread

Follow along with us as we provide Denver Broncos and Chicago Bears fans with the weekly game thread to hold discussions during the game for this preseason showdown.

This evening, the Broncos and Bears meet in the preseason opener for both squads at Chicago’s Soldier Field with question marks abounding for both squads. This is the case for most teams who have not done anything but hit each other in their respective training camps in anticipation of another season starting.

Expectations for both of these teams are probably meager this evening, as the object of every exhibition season in the NFL is to not have anyone of any importance to a team’s success get injured.

The Broncos will go with signal-caller Mark Sanchez to start the game and will give Trevor Siemian the second quarter to get his feet under him for the first time in the preseason. Siemian, who matriculated at nearby Northwestern, may have a better feel for the strange winds that come off of Lake Michigan at all times so at least he should be comfortable with the geography if nothing else.

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The entire second half will belong to third-string signal-caller Paxton Lynch, who will be getting his first NFL action of any kind, after the Broncos drafted him with the #26 overall pick out of Memphis in last April’s NFL Draft.

This will be another opportunity for the Broncos to match up against former head coach John Fox as well, with the Broncos beating the Bears 17-15 at Soldier Field in Week 11 of 2015 last November.

Overall, in the preseason, the Broncos have met the Bears eight times with Denver holding a 5-3 advantage all-time in exhibition games against Chicago.

The weather may be a bit interesting Thursday as Chicago’s FOX 32 chief meteorologist Tammie Souza reports.

Thus, if there is a lightning delay, it will be a good opportunity for both squads to deal with adversity, something that the late former Minnesota Vikings/Arizona Cardinals head coach Dennis Green would approve of as a way to prepare teams for the gruel of the regular season, as he would create “arbitrary adversity” at his training camp practices.

As you may recall, the Broncos will not dress linebacker Von Miller, defensive end/outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware or tackle Russell Okung.

The Bears, meanwhile, are hoping for wide-out Kevin White, a second-year man out of West Virginia, to break out after he missed all of his rookie season with a left shin injury, and see if he can complement a potentially dynamic receiving corps which also consists of Alshon Jeffery and former Bronco Eddie Royal.

Furthermore, there are questions about their first-round draft choice this past April, Leonard Floyd, an outside linebacker out of Georgia, who fell ill on the first day of training camp for Chicago before also suffering a shoulder injury in subsequent practices.

The Bears’ offensive line also has three new starters from last season, including tackle Bobby Massie, guard Cody Whitehair and guard Ted Larsen so it will be interesting to see how they fare against the Broncos’ pass rush.

In any event, this is your game thread, so feel free to use it as you see fit and we hope to have a great crowd tonight. If any Bears fans happen upon this thread, be nice to them. Being gentlemanly and ladylike is the Bronco Way!