Andy Dalton drops back to pass against the Denver Broncos. (Ron Chenoy-US PRESSWIRE)

Now that the Denver Broncos schedule has been released, we are going to take a game-by-game look at the regular season that the Broncos have in front of them.

The Denver Broncos travel to Cincinnati to take on an improving Bengals team. The Bengals finished 9-7 in 2011 and they lost to the Houston Texans in the wildcard round of the playoffs.

The last time the Broncos and Bengals met was in week two of last season in Denver. The Broncos won 24-22, making that Kyle Orton’s last win as the starter in Denver.  Andy Dalton threw for 332 yards and 2 touchdowns while Eric Decker had 5 catches for 113 yards and 2 touchdowns.

The Bengals were middle of the road offensively last season. They were 18th on offense, 19th in rushing, and 20th in passing.

It was their defense that did more damage limiting opponents to 20.2 points per game (9th in the league). They were 10th in rush defense and 9th in pass defense. They were also 5th in sacks and 7th in forced fumbles.

The Bengals offseason was highlighted by the addition of former Patriots tailback BenJarvus Green-Ellis. Ellis combined for 1,675 yards and 24 touchdowns in his last two seasons. The team also acquired former Cowboys corner Terrence Newman who had his best season in 2010 when he had 5 interceptions and 79 tackles. The Bengals signed Jamaal Anderson and former Bronco Derrick Harvey as well.

Early Prediction: Broncos – 27 Bengals – 17. The Bengals are an improving team, but Dalton can’t out-gun Manning.

Chargers Leaders in 2011:

Andy Dalton – 300-for-516 (58.1%), 3,398 passing yards, 20 TDs, 13 INTs

Cedric Benson – 1,067 yards (71.1 per game), 6 TDs, 5 fumbles

A.J. Green – 65 receptions, 1,057 yards, 7 TDs, 1 fumbles

Thomas Howard – 99 tackles

Reggie Nelson – 4 INTs

Geno Atkins – 7.5 sacks

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Knowshon Moreno's help in the backfield will likely come from the free agent market. (Joe Mahoney/AP Photo)

He went 12th overall in the 2009 draft, and in Josh McDaniels’ eyes, the former Georgia Bulldog was supposed to resurrect the Denver Broncos running game. In John Fox’s eyes, however, that may not be the case.

According to Jeff Legwold of the Denver Post, the Broncos may be use Knowshon Moreno as primarily a third down back. So much for draft position determining how much playing time an NFL player gets these days (or how many chances he has to prove himself for that matter).

The NFL is more physical than ever, and it’s unusual for team to have a  just one workhorse running back. Injuries pile up and careers shorten. Moreno has already dealt with his fair share of injuries most notably in the offseason which is the time for players to improve for the next year. He’s missed just three games in his two year career which isn’t a lot, but those injuries have kept him from developing in the offseason. He missed most of training camp last year after injuring his hamstring on the first day of camp.

Moreno’s production improved last season after averaging 4.3 yards per carry (up from 3.8), he had nine more receptions than his rookie year, and he cut his fumbles in half. Who knows what would have happened if Moreno had more time in camp and additional help in the backfield.
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