Three things the Broncos must do to beat the Buccaneers on Sunday
Sep 25, 2020, 6:51 AM
The Broncos season has the looks of a disaster. They are 0-2 and it looks like they will not get a win on Sunday at home against the Buccaneers. Injuries have ravaged the Broncos roster and their lack of quality depth is showing through at several different positions.
The Buccaneers are not going to take it easy on the Broncos. Quarterback Tom Brady has not quite looked like himself, as he gets used to his new offensive system under head coach Bruce Arians. As the season goes on, expect Brady to find his groove – perhaps as soon as this weekend.
Broncos coach Vic Fangio believes that Brady is as good as ever.
“I see a lot of the same guy. I’ve only coached against him twice in the last 10 or 11 years, but I’ve seen him a lot on video and TV. He doesn’t look any different to me to be honest with you. He’s still got really good arm strength and strong football intelligence in recognizing things. I don’t see a major difference other than the new uniform that he’s wearing,” Fangio said.
It’s not just the future Hall of Fame quarterback the Broncos will have to contend with. The Buccaneers are going to present huge problems for the Broncos on both sides of the ball. Here are three things the Broncos must do to beat the Buccaneers.
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Get to Tom Brady Early
Pressure makes any quarterback look mortal. Tom Brady may be the best quarterback to ever play in NFL history, but get some pressure on him and he will perform poorly. The Broncos are the only team in the league that have a winning record against Brady. They’ve been able to own that record due to the incredible defensive performances you’ve seen against him over the last 20 years.
The Broncos defense has not generated much pressure this season. After two games, they only have 2.0 sacks and their best pass-rusher (Bradley Chubb) has zero sacks so far this year. Fangio’s defense does not blitz that much, but that has to change if they want to get to the passer regularly. Broncos defensive coordinator Ed Donatell admitted the team may start doing things differently going forward.
“We’re going to mix looks. When you bring more players, sometimes it takes the stress off. A lot of these balls were coming out quick in these first couple weeks and I think it will continue to get better. Bradley is finding his stride and you’ll see him spike and continue to improve. I see it coming and we should be on pace for a real strong rush,” Donatell said.
Getting more pressure will have positive results. If the Broncos must blitz more, then so be it as they just need to get to the quarterback early and often.
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Stop Leonard Fournette
The last time the Broncos played against Leonard Fournette, the results were disastrous. In Week 4 of the 2019 season, Fournette (then a member of the Jaguars) rushed 29 times for 225 yards on the ground. The Broncos defense was broken in that game and it led to changes that helped them play better against the run for the rest of the season.
Now, Fournette has a new team – the best quarterback he’s ever played with – and he is still getting used to his new surroundings. Donatell knows how much it hurt his defense last year and what that means for this matchup.
“Last year, he definitely got our attention and we looked at our defense and made some changes and fixed some things. He’s a hell of a back. And if you let him get going, you can pay like we did last year. We can’t let him get going. They’ve got a really good backfield. Tackling is a premium and so is execution,” Donatell said.
Fournette is just getting his groove with the Buccaneers. In Week 1, he didn’t do much with only five yards rushing on five carries. That all changed in Week 2 when Fournette rushed 12 times for 103 yards and two touchdowns.
Buccaneers insiders tell me that the plan all along was to use Fournette more as the season goes on. They have Ronald Jones as their starter, but it looks like Fournette is going to get more touches and he could have another big game against the Broncos on Sunday.
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Use Noah Fant the Entire Game
The Broncos have a new-era weapon in second-year pro Noah Fant. The 2019 first-round pick has looked really good so far this season. Fant had a strong training camp, but it didn’t seem like enough people were talking about his potential for this season. People are talking now, as Fant has nine catches for 138 yards and two touchdowns.
For some reason, the Broncos only use Fant for about a half in each of the two contests so far this year. Fant has been open, and the team needs to use him more going forward. This is something offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur needs to implement as soon as possible.
“What I would say is that he’s been productive in two of the games. In those other halves, we’re trying to throw it around. But he’s got nine or 10 catches and he’s gotten in the end zone twice. Every once in a while, they’ll take something away or try and do something else, but we do try and throw him the ball. It’s not that segmented where you go away from him in certain halves. I do think that if the guys are doing their stuff and he’s running good routes, then he’ll get the ball. I do think it is a small sample size to start surmising that kind of stuff, but we’re really enjoying working with him every day. You see him get a little bit better every day in practice and in the games,” Shurmur said.
Enough with the excuses – there is no excuse for Fant not to be used as a primary weapon in the Broncos offense. The Broncos have to be considered a long-shot to beat the Buccaneers. If they use Fant more than just a half, then perhaps their long odds would get a bit shorter.
