Week 2 GDT: Washington Commanders @ Denver Broncos

[Broncofan]

Where:  Empower Field

When:   225 PM local, 425 PM ET

Keys to the game:

On D...

1.   Getting to Sam Howell - I mentioned this before Week 1, that Vance Joseph was a real unknown as a DC in being creative with pressure schemes, to help generate more pressure.  Obviously it also falls to the players - but we pretty much just saw straight blitzes, no stunts, zone blitzes, double-A gap plays, etc.    I hope it was an aberration.   The WAS OL is definitely a bottom 10 line - the Cards DL gave Howell everything he could handle.  And while I think Howell is a good prospect, and has plus athleticism that can create problems, he is willing to hold on to the ball enough to give up big sacks, and is TO-prone.   We have to do better than week 1 here - we just couldn't get off the field.  It's also going to be an issue because..

2.  Our coverage will need to step up as well - PS2 wasn't the problem - he wasn't quite his lockdown self, either.   I was also bothered by PS2 not shadowing Adams at key times, especially once Meyers left the game.    Now, with WAS, there are 2 very good WR's in Terry Mclaurin & Jahan Dotson.  PS2 covering either is fine.   Our 2nd-3rd CB's will need to step up vs. the other WR, and gadget guy Curtis Samuel.    I hope we see more of Drew Sanders, we need some speed/quicks/athleticism in coverage with Sterns out (realize Sanders is a LB, but we can't have awful LB coverage with less S help).

3.  Stopping the run - the easiest way to get Howell in situations where we can hunt for big plays, don't make it easy with the run game.   We did a good job with limiting Jacobs and LV run game, will need to do the same here. 

On O....

4.   Pass game explosiveness (Jerry Jeudy??) / protecting Russ  - this is harder with Dulcich out, but having some chunk plays would help a ton.   If you're dinking/dunking, the margin for error goes way down.    WAS has a very good pass rush even without Chase Young, so having Jeudy, who can put ppl in blenders, is huge.   In the search for getting playmakers into the game, wonder if we'll see more Mims this week (instead of Lil' Jordan / Brandon Johnson big-body types).

5.   Can we establish a run game vs. WAS D - the WAS run D is actually quite decent, obviously we're in trouble if we're 1-dimensional.

Intangibles...

6.  Special team, special teams, special teams - the coverage was better...but Lutz, man.    We just "break even" in ST's last week, we win.   Sigh.    Same deal applies here.

7.  Winning the TO battle - kinda duh, but usually teams that win the TO battle win the game (the missed XP & FG offset it last week).

Players I hope we see more of - Jeudy (duh), Drew Sanders & Perine (pass game weapon).  

I'll be REALLY depressed if I'm not starting another thread next week.  Fingers crossed.

Edited September 13, 2023 by Broncofan

[thebestever6]

when does Riley moss come back?

[broncofan48]

I think the real question we all should be asking is there enough members left for starting game days cause we might need 12+

[Broncofan]

Honestly if we can't win this game, zero excuses.    Riverboat Ron is certainly taking a novel approach here.

 

[AKRNA]

6 hours ago, Broncofan said:

 

6.  Special team, special teams, special teams - the coverage was better...but Lutz, man.    We just "break even" in ST's last week, we win.   Sigh.    Same deal applies here.

 

Maybe it's just me but I think thats a false narrative. The Raiders ran out the last 5 minutes of the clock. They started taking a knee right after the two minute warning. They were on our 23 with a 1st down ,1:42 to play and a 1 point lead.  Even if Lutz were perfect we probably still lose the game. 

True narrative? We lost to a better, more talented team at home. We don't have the horses to run Seans offense and don't have a DC to elevate a talent limited defense.

So, look for improvement where we can. Focus on some individuals, who should stay and who should go. Find some gold in a coal mine and don't spend much time worrying about the outcome. We are a long ways from serious contenders so have some fun with this. Try to be Sean and think about who on this roster and coaching staff can make us a serious contender in 5 years.

Maybe Sean can be our John Ralston, only time and a lot of great decisions will tell.

[broncos67]

We should win this game. Will we? Who knows. Then again, I was all but certain we would beat the Raiders too.

If Denver can generate any sort of pass rush and get Howell uncomfortable, it should be fine. Jeudy hopefully coming back can open things up offensively ever so slightly.

I'll predict 20-17 Denver, but it's effectively a coin flip for me.

[The Helicopter]

We might play better overall as a team this year, however, I'm seeing a top 5 pick in the draft. We should be able to score some good players the next few years...QB may remain a mystery unless Wilson show's progress. I just hope we stay competitive and nobody gives up.

[Cutler06]

14 hours ago, Broncofan said:

Honestly if we can't win this game, zero excuses.    Riverboat Ron is certainly taking a novel approach here.

 

Good Luck with that Ron !

[Cutler06]

11 hours ago, AKRNA said:

Maybe it's just me but I think thats a false narrative. The Raiders ran out the last 5 minutes of the clock. They started taking a knee right after the two minute warning. They were on our 23 with a 1st down ,1:42 to play and a 1 point lead.  Even if Lutz were perfect we probably still lose the game. 

True narrative? We lost to a better, more talented team at home. We don't have the horses to run Seans offense and don't have a DC to elevate a talent limited defense.

So, look for improvement where we can. Focus on some individuals, who should stay and who should go. Find some gold in a coal mine and don't spend much time worrying about the outcome. We are a long ways from serious contenders so have some fun with this. Try to be Sean and think about who on this roster and coaching staff can make us a serious contender in 5 years.

Maybe Sean can be our John Ralston, only time and a lot of great decisions will tell.

I can't agree with THAT !

[Dbrog24]

11 hours ago, AKRNA said:

So, look for improvement where we can. Focus on some individuals, who should stay and who should go. Find some gold in a coal mine and don't spend much time worrying about the outcome. We are a long ways from serious contenders so have some fun with this. Try to be Sean and think about who on this roster and coaching staff can make us a serious contender in 5 years.

Maybe Sean can be our John Ralston, only time and a lot of great decisions will tell.

I like the idea of this as I am already struggling to be excited about this next game. I've seen you bring up the 60s Broncos a lot recently, is this how you tried to cope with the products that were on the field at the time? Also random, but how did we end up getting out of that eventually? (I really should know more history about us than I do!)

[BroncoSojia]

I know a lot of people thought Russ played well last Sunday, but a dive into the film shows that a lot of the issues from last year are still there. IMO, the problem is that I don't believe Russ can play well and consistent in a structured and timing offense. He has vision and processing issues, along with lack luster pocket presence.  Most of his great plays in Seattle came from off-script plays and using his mobility and athleticism. Now that he's gotten older and his mobility has declined, he can't pull those plays off consistently. If he can't do that, and he can't play well in the pocket, then I'm not sure how high the ceiling will be for his play here. 

[big_palooka]

4 hours ago, Cutler06 said:

I can't agree with THAT !

7 losses in a row hasn't driven that point home for you? 

 

[Broncofan]

 

 

Clark's only a rotation guy, but that certainly doesn't help.    I'd be more reassured if VJ showed creativity in the pass rush last week - let's see what he can do with a bottom 10 OL (Howell was under a lot of pressure from a pretty mediocre ARI DL).

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Cutler06]

5 hours ago, big_palooka said:

7 losses in a row hasn't driven that point home for you? 

 

You're also talking about some PREVIOUS FO regimes, that doesn't make your team better with a 1 point win......troll elsewhere BP

[lomaxgrUK]

When the injuries happened last year, Hackett got absolutely obliterated. It was all his fault for not playing the starters in preseason and for a light camp.

Well, Payton did the opposite, the injuries have happened again, yet absolute crickets from all media and twitter pundits .....

It's time we all accept the truth - this team is cursed for having the funnest time possible as an NFL fan when Peyton Manning was here. Sooner we accept it, sooner we all reach closure.