Miles
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- Mar 18, 2019
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The Broncos' regular-season opener isn't for another few months, but over the next few weeks, DenverBroncos.com will take an early look at each game on the Broncos' 2020 schedule. We don't know how injuries could impact each contest, but we'll present the pressing storylines, matchups, questions and more.
It's never too early to start talking football.
We continue with Denver's Week 4 game on "Thursday Night Football" against the New York Jets.
Storylines to monitor:
Playing on a short week is never easy — especially when you have to fly across the country to do so. This game will test the Broncos both mentally and physically, but it's also one that the Broncos may need to win if they're going to challenge for a playoff spot in 2020. The Jets are one of just two teams the Broncos face in the first five weeks of the season that finished last year with a losing record. The other, Tampa Bay, added Tom Brady in free agency and figures to be a tough matchup.
The Jets, though, will be no pushover. The team finished the season 6-2 and went 7-6 with 2018 third-overall pick Sam Darnold under center. The Jets spent the offseason supplementing their offense to support their young quarterback and already boast a near-dominant defense. Sound a bit familiar?
Former Broncos center Conner McGovern was among the Jets' free-agent additions, and he'll play his first game against his former team.
New York also has a handful of defensive stars, as Jamal Adams leads the secondary and linebacker C.J. Mosley returns from injury to solidify the middle of the defense. Drew Lock will face his third top 10 defense in four weeks, as the Patriots, Steelers and Jets were all among the league's best in 2019. The pressure may fall on Lock, too. The Jets ranked second in rushing defense a season ago.
From a coaching angle, former Broncos assistant Adam Gase will coach his second game against the Broncos. He and the Dolphins — where he coached from 2016-18 — earned a 35-9 win over Denver in 2017.
Player to watch:
RB Le'Veon Bell
The Jets rushed for 323 yards the last time they played the Broncos — more on that in a moment — so I'll be watching whether Denver's defense can handle the two-time first-team All-Pro running back.
Bell hasn't had a 1,000-yard rushing season since 2017 — he held out for all of 2018 before signing with the Jets ahead of the 2019 season — but he's still a talented player. Last year, he rushed for 789 yards and two touchdowns and added 461 receiving yards. The Jets have new weapons in receivers Breshad Perriman and Denzel Mims, but the Broncos' first focus should be to ensure that Bell doesn't get going. That won't be easy on a short week, especially given the physicality required to stop the run.
The good news? Denver's run defense in 2019 was among the league's best after Mike Purcell and Alexander Johnson entered the starting lineup in Week 5. That coincided with Kareem Jackson's return from injury — and the Broncos' defense looked like a new unit. After struggling against the run in a Week 4 loss to Jacksonville, the Broncos allowed the seventh-fewest rushing yards per game over the season's final 12 games.