Last week against the Seattle Seahawks, the Denver Broncos did not score 25 points, they lost 17-16.
In games where the Denver Broncos scored 25+ points in 2021, they were 5-0.
Against the Seattle Seahawks, the defense held strong in the second half keeping the Seahawks to just 17 points. Unfortunately for the Denver Broncos, the offense was unable to score 18.
This week the Denver Broncos will be facing the Houston Texans who did not win nor lose last week, they tied with the Indianapolis Colts, 20-20. Houston was an undeniable underdog in this bout and not many expected this strong of a performance, but this Texans team will be better than what most expected.
That isn’t to say the Texans will be a playoff team, but I do think they will ruffle some feathers in the AFC South.
Good news for the Denver Broncos, they will be playing at home. No more of this ground-shaking noise that provokes communication errors and other forms of mistakes. Bad news for the Denver Broncos, they will be without K.J. Hamler, Justin Simmons, Quinn Meinerz, and Billy Turner.
Kendall Hinton and Netane Muti will be stepping up to the active roster for Meinerz and Hamler.
Justin Simmons is the leader of the defense and the only person who is close to his talents right now is Patrick Surtain II. Quinn Meinerz I would say is the best offensive lineman for the Denver Broncos.
To win this game, the Denver Broncos do not have to score 25 points, but I think they will.
In just about every statistical category, the Denver Broncos dominated the Seattle Seahawks. More time of possession, more passing yards, more rushing yards, but at their expense, more penalties. Discipline and communication will be very important if the Denver Broncos want to fix the woes that prohibited them from leaving Seattle with a victory.
Houston gave up 517 total yards to the Indianapolis Colts, who led a strong comeback after being down 17 points. It was an attack that came from the air and ground, Matt Ryan threw for 352 yards and Jonathan Taylor rushed for 161 yards on 31 carries.
Nyheim Hines only ran the ball three times and Matt Ryan added a few rushing attempts himself. Roughly 40 rushing attempts from the Colts, I expect the Denver Broncos to have around 35. Houston’s defense seems to really get worn down as the game progressed after a strong start.
Javonte Williams may tote the rock around 18-20 times and Melvin Gordon around 15-17 with a few carries from the combination of Andrew Beck, Russell Wilson, and Mike Boone. That’s right, my prediction this week is Andrew Beck will have a rushing touchdown.
Russell Wilson will throw the ball around 30-35 times and have around 320 passing yards with three touchdowns, Courtland Sutton and Jerry Jeudy both will catch one, maybe the last one goes to Javonte or Melvin.
Denver Broncos will score 34 points this game and have a bounce-back performance and go 3-for-3 in the red zone this week.
Key players for the Houston Texans defense will be Jonathan Greenard and Derek Stingley this week. Greenard was a huge contributor last season and Stingley was the team’s top draft pick this year.
Will the Denver Broncos’ defense hold to Houston Texans to 25 or under?
Yes. I think they will.
I do think the Houston Texans will give the Denver Broncos some problems though, especially Brandin Cooks. Depending on the game plan, I think the defense could have a lapse or two in communication that will allow the speedy receiver in Cooks to get past the defense.
It happened last year in Baltimore, the Eagles had some success with it and now with Justin Simmons being out, I do think it is possible you see Cooks haul in a deep one for a touchdown. O.J. Howard caught a pair of touchdown passes on a pair of receptions last week.
Colby Parkinson and Will Dissly, two tight ends, scored against the Denver Broncos last week.
In the first half against the Seahawks, the Denver Broncos’ defense looked so bad that Geno Smith looked good. Davis Mills is a better quarterback than Geno Smith. Davis Mills is a guy who has outlived expectations so far and is a very capable quarterback.
Rex Burkhead saw the lion’s share of the carries last week with 14, and hyped-up rookie, Dameon Pierce saw just 11. I’d expect that to flip this week, Pierce should be seeing the bulk of the workload and this could be his coming out party if the defense does not buckle down.
Rashad Penny had success last week, the Seahawks just got away from it. He had 12 carries for 60 yards, any coach would accept a 5.0 YPC average, any day of the week. With Josey Jewell in question, the inside linebacker group for the Denver Broncos is average at best.
Alex Singleton should be happy with a middling grade for his performance last week, Jonas Griffith did not drop jaws with his performance either.
Bradley Chubb and Patrick Surtain II were the defensive players of the week last week. I think Chubb gets another sack this week, I think Patrick Surtain II records his first interception of the season. Dre’Mont Jones gets two sacks this week and Randy Gregory gets his first sack as a Denver Bronco.
Denver Broncos defense opens up a bit early, but I think they clamp down and hold the Houston Texans to just 20 points.
Denver Broncos even up their record with a 34-20 win against the Houston Texans.