3 bold predictions for the Broncos in Week 3 against the Buccaneers

The Denver Broncos are coming off of a rough 0-2 start once again this season, the same ugly start they had in 2023. After starting 0-2 last season, the Broncos took a road trip to the state of Florida and, well...they gave up 70 points to the Miami Dolphins.

We certainly don't anticipate things going off the rails like that here in 2024, but the dejá vu cannot be ignored. The Broncos are bringing their annoying 0-2 record into the state of Florida once again this week with a matchup in Tampa Bay against the Buccaneers. Shockingly, the Broncos have a 3-1 all-time road record against the Buccaneers with a win in their most recent trip to Tampa Bay back in 2016 (27-7).

Historic trends don't really "play" when it comes to inter-conference matchups but this is still a week in which the Broncos desperately need to get on track, and we'll take any positive trends we can get.

Vegas doesn't like the Broncos' odds at all with the line on the game changing from -5.5 in favor of the Bucs to -6.5. Even with that in mind, we're going to try and manifest some positivity for the Broncos against the Bucs this week. What are our bold predictions for Week 3, which essentially amount to things we really just want to see?

Running game is revived in Broncos bold predictions vs. Buccaneers in Week 3

1. Broncos run for 150 yards

Now, when we talk about trying to manifest bold predictions, this is about as bold as it gets at this point. The Broncos have been so bad running the ball this season that I struggled to even put this in here. But perhaps speaking it is the way to make it happen.

So how about running for 150 against the Bucs? Why is this even possible? Well, the Bucs have allowed 277 yards on the ground so far this season, and it's possible that Vita Vea may not play in this game (or play sparingly). The Bucs have allowed 4.9 yards per carry so far this season and it's a clear chance for the Broncos to get back on track in this regard.

Of course, Todd Bowles is looking at Denver's running game so far this season and probably thinking the same for his defense...

Seeing the Broncos run for 150 yards in a game right now would be massive. They've only run for 163 in the first two weeks combined.

2. Broncos go 100 percent in red zone opportunities

Last week against the Steelers, the Broncos were 0-for-3 with an ugly interception among their red zone opportunities. This season, they are dead last in the NFL at converting in the red zone (14.3 percent).

It's been about as ugly as you could have anticipated for the Broncos in the red zone to this point with many dirty hands in that regard. But they could bump that number up at least a little bit by going 100 percent in their chances against the Bucs. The Bucs have allowed 40 percent of red zone trips to be converted into TDs so far this season.

3. Broncos defense holds Bucs under 20 points

Here's a fun stat for you:

The Broncos are one of only four teams to allow teams to score less than 20 points 32 or more times since 2020. And they are the only team among the four qualifiers without 42 victories. The Broncos haven't been competent offensively for a really long time, which has made this team absolutely brutal to watch on the whole.

But the defense has done its part a good chunk of the time, including this season. The defense notched two safeties in the first half against the Seahawks and got some big stops down the stretch of that game. The defense held the Steelers to just 13 points last week and only three of them in the second half.

It may not even be overly bold but I'm making the prediction that we see the defense hold the Bucs under 20 on Sunday. Now, what will the offense do with that if it happens? That is a bigger question mark.