Week 14 AFC West Roundup
By Justin Smith
Denver Broncos
3rd Place – AFC West
Record: 8-5
Last Game: lost to Tennessee Titans (7-6) 13-10 in Tennessee
Next Game: home to New England Patriots (11-2) Sun, Dec 18, 4:25 EST
The defense did their job, holding a recently hot Marcus Mariota and Tennessee to only 13 points in Tennessee.
The offense did not do their job, scoring only 10 points and failing to move the ball on the ground yet again. Devontae Booker was supposed to supplant C.J. Anderson and become a break-out star.
In the seven games he’s been starter since Anderson went down in Week 6 against the Chargers, Booker has 115 carries for 290 yards and 2 TDs. That’s a paltry 2.5 YPC average, and a TD every 57.5 carries. Not good.
Consequently the Broncos have struggled a bit, losing three of their last five games while unable to find balance on offense. Trevor Siemian has played better than anyone could have expected, and he’s still a mediocre quarterback.
They have no exciting offensive players outside of Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas, and with Siemian barely able to throw them the ball it’s painful at times to watch. Paxton Lynch isn’t ready. The defense is still great but aging, and getting tired.
The team is in danger of collapsing at the moment. Justin Forsett looks like their best running back option. That says a lot about the state of the union in Denver right now.
And now they get to host the Patriots, perennial powerhouses and Broncos nemesis. Peyton Manning left and took the luster of this matchup with him. Brady-Siemian just doesn’t have the same cache, and neither does this Denver team.
Brady is a magician, and it’s because he’s adaptable. Gronk is his favorite receiver, then Julian Edelman, then whoever. Except, not anymore.
Gronk went out. Edleman has been hobbled — so enter Malcolm Mitchell. The kid is bigger, faster, more talented than Edelman — and taking his red-zone targets. Brady recognized this and said, I don’t care if you’re a rookie. Without Gronk, you’re my new go-to guy in crunch time. Sorry Jules.
Mitchell responded with a touchdown in four straight games and gives the Patriots a big-bodied vertical threat to go with their underneath waterbugs in Hogan and Edelman. Martellus Bennett is great when healthy, but he isn’t.
The Broncos have the D to hang with the Pats receivers — but then LeGarrette Blount comes on in with the hammer. And the Broncos don’t have the horses — hehe — healthy at linebacker to stop him.
The Patriots will probably win this game, making Denver 8-6 and likely tied with the Dolphins and/or Ravens/Steelers for the final wild-card spot.
Based on the way things are looking, 10 wins will be the wild-card cutoff. That means Denver has to win two of their final three games. Can they do it? Probably not, and here’s why:
After this game they get to travel to Arrowhead for a tilt with Kansas City before ending the season at home against the Raiders. So that means the Broncos final three opponents – are the top three teams in the AFC right now. Their combined record is 31-8.
Yikes. It may be a cliche, but it’ll take a miracle right now for that to happen.