I think I get more nervous for a playoff game that the Patriots should win than one where it’s a toss up. Make no mistake, after the way these two teams looked this weekend, the Patriots should win this game. Well, based on how Denver’s looked all season, squeaking out wins after fortuitous mistakes by their opponents, the Patriots should win this game.
But it’s in Denver and that’s what scares me, because things have traditionally been shaky in Denver for the Patriots especially in the playoffs. But it’s hard to see the player Peyton Manning is now and worry that he’s suddenly going to be tossing it all over the field on our defense like it’s two-plus years ago.
You have to respect the Broncos ground game, but if that gets shut down and the big plays to Sanders and Thomas are taken away, it would line up similarly to how the Chiefs game went – lot of regular personnel on defense to crowd the box and kill the running game, press their receivers and make Manning consistently hit 10+ yard passing plays to win the game.
Amazingly this flips the script on BB’s usual Peyton gameplan, where you’d concede the run to take the game out of his hands. It really just comes down to how healthy Collins and Hightower can be, because with both of them in there, the Broncos will struggle to consistently run the ball.
What scares me is that for the Patriots to lose this game they’re going to have to have a lot of mistakes, a lot of calls go against them and just get none of the bounces. Because with Gronk and Edelman in the lineup New England should really move the ball at will. Put it this way – with Gronk and Edelman in the lineup the Pats are 4-0 against the Broncos.
I am all about the season-long narrative with my Pats coverage. I like meaningful games and there’s no better narrative, no more meaningful game than having to go back to Denver, where the 2015 season started to fall apart from its perfect start.
The Pats already avenged a brutal loss from last season, and now they have the chance to avenge both the 2013 AFCCG loss and the earlier loss this season. Denver has been a tough place for Brady over the course of his career. What a perfect chance to finish off those demons this weekend.