Three things the Broncos must do to beat the Bills on Saturday

The Denver Broncos come home in Week 15 for a Saturday game against the Buffalo Bills. They will be facing one of the best teams in the AFC and an MVP-caliber quarterback in Josh Allen. This is a much better team than the team the Broncos beat last week, the Carolina Panthers, so they must play a near-perfect game for a chance to win.

Allen could have been the quarterback of the future for the Broncos. Instead of selecting him with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the Broncos chose pass-rusher Bradley Chubb. While Chubb is a fine pro, Allen is one of the best quarterbacks in the game after only a few years.

Broncos head coach Vic Fangio had great praise for Allen earlier this week.

“He’s having a hell of a season. He’s a big, strong guy who can run. He’s tough to tackle in the pocket and he’s tough to tackle when he breaks out of the pocket. They have some designed runs for him. He’s seeing the field very well and throwing it very well. The guy has really emerged as one of the top quarterbacks in the league, and I can remember when people were saying there wasn’t enough good quarterbacks for the league and it seems like we’re playing a good one every week, so I think that’s disappeared,” Fangio said.

This is going to be a difficult game for the Broncos to win. Could they pull of the seemingly impossible and get the win? Here are three things the Broncos must do to beat the Bills.

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No Comparison

Drew Lock is not Josh Allen. They are both strong-armed quarterbacks, but the comparisons dry up after that. Allen is much more athletic and a mobile quarterback who can attack a defense with his legs at any time. We’ve also seen Allen grow as a passer in terms of accuracy and pass-placement this season.

He’s played more games than Lock, but Allen started ahead of Lock in terms of skill set and success in the NFL. Less-informed “analysts” will compare Allen’s stats as a passer to begin his career to that of Lock’s, where Lock comes out a little bit better. However, Allen has been asked to do a lot more and run a full offense from the moment he came into the league. Also, left out of those numbers (quite conveniently I might add) are Allen’s more than 600 yards rushing during that time. Allen is better than Lock, he was from day one and Lock may never be as good.

Lock has upside, but I don’t want him to get into the mindset that he has to “outduel” Allen in this contest on Saturday. There is a chance with further development that Lock can be a top-15 quarterback in the NFL someday, but that time is not now. Lock had a great game against the Panthers, but that’s a below-average defense who does not get after the quarterback much at all. The Bills defense isn’t as good as they’ve been in the past, but they are better than the Panthers.

Lock has his work cut out for him this week, and I hope he plays within this offense. If that means taking the short stuff and only getting a few deep shots, so be it. That plan to take the checkdowns and set up the deep passes worked to perfection last week. They’ll need a similar game from Lock in order to give themselves the best chance to win. Lock has upside, and he sees Allen as a player he can follow in his footsteps.

Lock has made the goal of developing like Allen his primary target.

“I feel like it’s patience with him. Obviously, he struggled a little bit when he got into the league as far as completion percentage goes, but he figured it out. He learned, kept growing, kept realizing what looks he wanted for certain plays and now he has the experience. He’s played in it, he’s struggled in it, and when you struggle in it you end up learning, you end up thriving. That’s why he’s playing extremely good ball right now. It’s football that I want to end up eventually getting to and playing like. There was a little sign of it last week, but it’s all about making progress, keep making small steps forward. But yes, he is progressing. It’s fun to watch him because I know him and he’s a great guy. I loved being around him when I was around him. I’m happy for his success, but hopefully we can stop it here this Sunday,” Lock said.

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Shoulder the Load

Melvin Gordon has been a key member for the Broncos offense this season, and during the last couple of weeks, he’s played like their best running back. He ended up going over 100 yards rushing against the Chiefs in Week 13 and ran strong against the Panthers in Week 14. In order to help the team win in Week 15, it will take another good game from Gordon.

The Pat Shurmur offense is finally using Gordon the right way. He’s a gap runner who can work well on third downs and in the red zone. Gordon was never really used the right way earlier this season, and the team was not blasting open the holes for him that you see today.

The Broncos figured out that pulling the offensive linemen and getting a freight train out in front of Gordon really works to wear down a defense. Gordon needs to hold up to this workload as Phillip Lindsay deals with a hip injury and doesn’t look like he used to. Just listed this week with a shoulder injury,

Gordon needs some rest during the week of practice so he can be ready for a large workload on Saturday. The team believes in Gordon and they need him to fight against the Bills.

Fangio likes what he’s seen from Gordon so far this year.

“Yeah, he’s running well. Melvin’s always been a good back in this league. He had good years with the Chargers — his last season with the Chargers was choppy because of his holdout — but he’s an established, good running back in this league. He runs hard, he runs with good pad level, he could get the extra yards after contact. I’ve been really pleased with the way he’s played,” Fangio said.

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Overcome Corner Problems

The Broncos are really hurting at the cornerback position entering Week 15. They only have three healthy cornerbacks on the roster as they prepare to take on the Bills. Michael Ojemudia, De’Vante Bausby and Nate Hairston are the three corners healthy and ready to go for Saturday.

The Broncos have lost Bryce Callahan, Essang Bassey, Duke Dawson and Kevin Toliver to various injuries. Add in A.J. Bouye being suspended for the rest of the season and you can see the trouble the Broncos are in. They did sign rookie Parnell Motley off the 49ers practice squad, but he’s going through COVID-19 protocols and is not available to play against the Bills.

Good thing they have safety Will Parks back on the roster as he can play the nickel corner and gives you a veteran presence in the secondary. The Broncos secondary is going to have their hands full with the Bills wide receiving corps.

Stefon Diggs is one of the best receivers in the game, and his presence has helped catapult Allen to the top of the passing charts. Cole Beasley is a trusted target for Allen and can work the underneath routes to get open with ease. Add in former Broncos wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie, a rising talent in Gabriel Davis and an athletic tight end in Dawson Knox and you can see how the Bills bring multiple weapons with varying skill set to the passing game.

Keeping all of these talented players in check is going to be a huge challenge for the Broncos – and it’s made even more difficult with the banged up cornerbacks.

Fangio has been coaching a long time but only having three corners for a game is new to him.

“No, I’ve never been in this situation before —a nd when you say three corners, the third one just got here. So, there’s a lot to learn and a lot to get in. (I’ve) never been in this situation before. Hopefully, Michael (Ojemudia) and (De’Vante Bausby) and Will (Parks) as the nickel can stay upright and play the entire game and we won’t have to find out,” Fangio said.

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