Patriots-Broncos Has Turned Into A Clash Of The Best Defenses

There was a time when the matchup between the New England Patriots and Denver Broncos meant an aerial showdown between Hall of Fame quarterbacks. This Sunday, it’s going to be more about the defense. With Tom Brady being short on weapons and Peyton Manning out with a serious foot injury, Sunday Night Football may turn into a clash of the best defenses.

Tom Brady doesn’t hide his disappointment about the game. Brady says he’ll miss matching up with his long-time rival quarterback. But he’ll likely miss not having some key parts on offense even more, particularly injured Julian Edelman, who is out, and Danny Amendola, who is unlikely to play. Aaron Dobson went on injured reserve this week. The Patriots’ roster is getting thin.

“There’s nobody that has more respect for Peyton than me, outside of probably his parents, his brother,” a disappointed Brady explained, via AP Sports. “If anybody can appreciate what Peyton has accomplished, it’s me. He’s just been remarkable in every part of his career. He’s been a tremendous player.”

That means Brady and the Patriots will be facing a Denver defense that has chewed up its share of quarterbacks. Although Andrew Luck and the Colts came away from the battle with a win, Luck is still feeling the effects. He has a lacerated kidney and torn abdominal muscle. He’s also sitting on the sideline until the wounds heal. Aaron Rodgers also took a beating by the Denver defense. The Packers have lost four of five, since tangling with the Broncos.

Brady knows that the heat will be on. The Patriots will be facing the league’s top-ranked defense. Brady understands that the Denver defense is going to be coming at him with everything.

“These guys, it’s a lot of tough, tight coverage,” Brady said. “They put a lot of pressure on you. I think that’s the mark of a good defense is putting pressure on the offense. They’ve limited teams to yards, points, turnovers, sacks, first-down defense. They’re impressive in every statistical category.”

Bill Belichick has a long history of disrupting the rhythm of young quarterbacks. It’s reasonable to assume that Osweiler will lean heavily on Ronnie Hillman. The Patriots, playing their past three games without star linebacker Jamie Collins, have completely shut down the run.

Bill Belichick will have the Patriots ready. Brock Osweiler knows that and respects the Patriots’ ability to adjust to the situation. But he’s also ready for the challenge.

“Obviously, what coach Belichick has accomplished in the past decade, 15 years is maybe second to none,” Osweiler says. “But at the end of the day, I’m not going against Bill Belichick on Sunday. I’m going against their defense and their football team.”

While a matchup between Tom Brady and Brock Osweiler may not have been what fans were hoping for when the Patriots and Broncos were scheduled to face off in week 12, perhaps the quality of the game itself will be improved. Manning’s struggles have been tremendously uncharacteristic. He’s thrown nine touchdown passes and 17 picks. He hasn’t been that bad since his rookie season.

The Patriots should be able to outlast the Broncos. Returning to the ground game will be necessary to keep the Broncos from teeing off on Brady. With LeGarrette Blount getting a higher volume of carries, the Patriots can use him to establish the play-action pass. That means Gronk will have to battle out of the coverages. He’ll have to beat double-teams and possibly triple blanketing to help the Patriots offense move the chains.

The Patriots have a stout defense too. According to CBS Sports, with 32 sacks, the Patriots’ pass rush is third in the NFL to Denver, which has 34. Getting to Osweiler should rattle him into making more pressure-based throws. He’s already admitted to feeling jittery and having doubts, before playing the Bears. The Patriots D should make him a nervous wreck.

“When you haven’t started a game in three-and-a-half years, those thoughts do creep in.”

The Patriots pass rush should be able to bring back some of those thoughts.

[Feature Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images]