Andrew Wade
I believe the Denver Broncos finally end their season-opening skid here with a win over Jacksonville Sunday.
Gardner Minshew looked good in his debut, and to be honest, the Jaguars haven’t played that bad despite their 1-2 start.
In each of Denver’s games they were in the game in the fourth quarter but penalties and untimely turnovers hurt them. Flacco has been doing a wonderful job of protecting the ball so far, and this offense isn’t as pathetic as it may look.
If they can avoid the holding penalty saga that impacts them every game, I think they take their first victory here.
Broncos 17, Jaguars 10
Graham Tiedtke
This might be where the Denver Broncos end their losing streak.
The Broncos have allowed 109.3 rushing yards per game through three games this season. Leonard Fournette is typically one of the better runners in the league. The Titans held him to just 66 yards on 15 carries last week.
Denver’s focus will have to be on covering well, making great defensive plays and stopping Fournette.
On offense, they will have to finish drives. Far too often have we seen them generate long drives that end up with a field goal attempt or a punt. That was an issue last week, as the Broncos went 8-of-15 on third down. They had been even worse during the first two weeks of the season:
In Oakland, the Denver Broncos converted on 6-of-13 (46%) of their third downs. Against the Chicago Bears, they converted on just 3-of-11 (27%).
Jacksonville will be without cornerback Jalen Ramsey for this game, which is a huge bonut for the Broncos offense.
I think they will see some improvement in this game against the Jaguars rookie quarterback and finally get some sacks.
Broncos 20, Jaguars 16
Sayre Bedinger
The Broncos have a pretty straight-forward way to get on the right track this weekend.
They have a home game against a rookie quarterback, they have lost seven straight games (so they’re due) and they have no sacks or turnovers to start the season.
Again, they’re going against a rookie QB. Although Minshew Mania has been fun from the outside perspective, it’s due to hit a bump in the road somewhere.
A road game against a ticked off defense is going to be tough for Minshew, I think.
Broncos 24, Jaguars 13