Getty Kareem Jackson #22 of the Denver Broncos celebrates with temmates after an interception. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
Six days away, Broncos Country! That’s just six Jay Cutler days away from the Denver Broncos invading the New Jersey swamps to face the New York Giants in the 2021 season opener on September 12.
First-year general manager George Paton has earned rave reviews from those in the know for his shrewd signings and deft draft picks. And by midway through the opener at MetLife Stadium, fans will know whether Paton’s moves have paid any dividends.
Getting off to a Fast Start
Denver’s opening schedule, particularly the first three games, feature very winnable contests. Following their tilt with the Giants, the Broncos travel to Jacksonville to face rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence, and then open Empower Field at Mile High Stadium to take on rookie quarterback Zach Wilson and the New York Jets. The Broncos should finally have a September worthy of pride, as they are favored in all three matchups.
Head coach Vic Fangio is 0-7 during his first two seasons as the lead man, so it’s imperative his squad gets off to a fast start to the season — specifically getting a quick jump on the Giants. MetLife will be certainly raucous, as it’ll be the first time the stadium will have fans since the world stopped due to the global pandemic.
Is Teddy as Dependable as Touted?
There’s a theory that starting quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was tabbed QB1 by Fangio because the veteran journeyman was the safer pick over the erratic Drew Lock. But a closer and more extensive dive into Bridgewater’s 2020 performance as a Carolina Panther shows otherwise.
Bridgewater threw 11 interceptions, last season, and according to Erick Trickel’s findings, the quarterback wasn’t nearly as careful with the football as his backers suggest. Trickel left room for criticism for some of the picks due to poor pass blocking, receivers having balls slip through fingers, or even a tipped ball at the line of scrimmage, but his main point was that Bridgewater lacks the necessary arm strength to push the ball downfield or squeeze it into tight spots when needed.
Some of the turnovers were in fact just Bridgewater being careless with the football — a mantra Lock dissenters always fell back on whenever they sought his benching.
Will PS2 Live up to the Hype?
Paton took some flack from fans when he selected cornerback Patrick Surtain II with the ninth overall pick in the 2020 draft, instead of a quarterback. The angst was on further display when the New England Patriots released former league MVP, Cam Newton, in favor of rookie quarterback Mac Jones, who was selected six picks later. The other quarterback du jour was fellow rookie signal-caller Justin Fields, who was selected 11th.
While Jones has been lauded for his high football intelligence and will start opening day, Fields will be backing up veteran Andy Dalton. But if either — or worse, both — quarterbacks reach stardom, there will be pockets of Broncos fans who will always lament the PS2 draft, no matter how excellent he may likely be. Surtain II will need to make an immediate impact against the Giants to keep the naysayers off his and Paton’s backs.
The New No-Fly Zone
Speaking of Surtain II, as the newest member of the Broncos’ vaunted secondary, he and that new-look unit will get an immediate test against the Giants. Daniel Jones is more than capable of carving up a secondary, so the Broncos’ back end will need to be locked into their assignments.
Jones’s arsenal had its own revamping, adding talented wideout Kenny Golladay and speedster John Ross via free agency, and ultra-quick slot maven Kadarius Toney in the 2020 draft.
Second Time is the Charm?
Not since Peyton Manning rode off into the championship sunset has the Broncos utilized the same offensive system in consecutive seasons. But with the return of offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur for the second season in a row, the Broncos figure to be more cohesive. Shurmur, who was the Giants’ head coach from 2018-2019, when he led them to a 9-23 mark, will be returning to the Meadowlands for the second time (first time as an opponent of the Giants).
Will he be more locked in than usual, seeking redemption? Will he play conservatively, utilizing a ton of play-action passing, fully aware of Bridgewater’s limitations? Or will the coach turn the passing game loose against the Giants’ secondary?
Something to Prove
The Broncos have a bevy of questions that need answering, but chief among them are the return of its star receiver and star pass rusher, both of whom missed most and all of 2020, respectively.
Wideout Courtland Sutton missed all but a few snaps of 2020 when he went down with a torn ACL in Week 2 — and this after sitting out Week 1 with a shoulder injury. Can Sutton get back to form when he was a 2019 Pro Bowler? And will the Giants look at him as Denver’s WR1? Big Blue’s secondary is among the best in the league, featuring safeties Logan Ryan and Jabrill Peppers, and cornerbacks Adoree Jackson and James Bradberry — the latter being honored by his peers as a top-100 player of 2020. Will Sutton be up to the challenge right out of the gate?
Like Sutton, linebacker Von Miller is returning from a 2020 season-ending injury. Will the future Hall of Famer be the guy who only tallied eight sacks in 2019, or closer to the guy who notched 14.5 sacks in 2018? It’s likely his 2021 production will fall somewhere in the middle, but if he’s to enjoy a great rebound season, he’ll need to make light work of a Giants’ offensive line that has had issues protecting Jones, and didn’t have the greatest of preseasons.
Follow Tony Williams on Twitter: @TBone8