Sometimes it’s not about who you play, but when you play them, that makes it even more so. That’s certainly worth saying about Thursday night’s game between the Broncos and Saints, a game that will kick off the NFL’s seventh regular-season appearance.
A day ago, the Saints were 2-0 and on par with the soccer international, when the Broncos were 0-2 next, scoring just six points in an Hour 2 loss to Pittsburgh. Things are totally different now; Unused Orleans has lost four at a time, and Denver had won three games at a time before ending the same weekend loss to the Chargers.
The Broncos being wanted in this contest would have been impossible four weeks ago. Quarterback games are the biggest reason the tables have grown. The game was already moving in the wrong direction, the Saints season suffered to move south when Derek Carr lost in Hour 5 to the Saints. Conversely, a perfect exchange of the Broncos’ safe pass can also be attributed to the continued growth of rookie quarterback Bo Nix.
Now that we’ve set the table, here’s how you can monitor the action along with our breakdown and prediction for Thursday night’s contest.
The best way to monitor Broncos-Saints
- When: Thursday October 17 | 8:15 pm Eastern Time
- The place: Caesars Superdome – Orleans, Louisiana, unused
- Resident wave: Top video
- Apply: CBS Sports App
- Odd: Broncos -2.4, OU 37 (via BetMGM)
When the Saints have the ball
Despite their four-game slump, the Unutilized Orleans offense remains fifth in the league in scoring. However, there is good anticipation that won’t be the case next Thursday night, as the team will be without safety Cesar Ruiz (knee), receivers Chris Olave (concussion) and Rashid Shaheed (knee). Carr (indirect) and tight end Taysom Hill (clean) are unsure, middle/safety Lucas Patrick (chest) is questionable.
With Olave and Shaheed out, the Saints’ passing competition will likely lean heavily toward running back Alvin Kamara and tight ends Foster Moreau and Juwan Johnson. Kamara enters Thursday night’s contest as the team’s season-leading receiver with 28 receptions. Moreau and Johnson have combined to catch 21 passes for 230 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Fifth-round rookie Bub Approach, the Saints’ most accomplished receiver who will be active Thursday night, is coming off his best NFL competition to date. He was five of eight targets for 45 yards and a score at the end of Sunday’s loss to Tampa Bay. In a big-game ultimatum, Approach averaged 17.2 yards per reception during his college career that included stops at three other colleges.
With Carr unsure and not having practiced all this, rookie Spencer Rattler is ready to start his second job. Rattler briefly found his groove and finished Sunday leading the Saints to four straight playoff qualifiers. But he and the offense stalled in a gigantic way next. The unit’s final eight drives included five punts and two interceptions by Rattler, who went on to five sacks.
In retrospect, the Saints definitely weren’t thrilled that Rattler threw 40 passes in his first NFL game. Against Denver, expect fewer throws from Rattler and more handoffs to Kamara and backfield partner Jamaal Williams, a former 1,000-yard rusher with the Lions who only has 27 carries this season so far.
Rattler and company have the unenviable process of dealing with a complicated Denver defense. They may not be the orange weight, but Sean Payton’s unit looks good on its own, led by cornerback Patrick Surtain II and a career that has already sacked opposing quarterbacks 22 times.
Six Broncos have already totaled no less than two sacks, led by outside linebacker Jonathan Cooper’s 4.5 sacks. Remain confident, the Broncos stealth has the Saints’ regard, and it will be absolutely vital for unused Orleans to not allow this part of the Broncos group into the game.
Denver’s defense is among the NFL’s top 10 in many divisions, including in points allowed (fourth), passing yards allowed (fifth) and red zone power (first). If there’s one segment the Saints can exploit, it’s Denver’s third-ranked defense (19th in the league) and run defense (14th in yards allowed). That’s where Kamara and Williams come into play.
Rattler will want to play crafty plays, but he’ll have to let him rip at least a couple of times for Denver’s defense to be honest.
When the Broncos have the ball
Nix’s rookie season hasn’t been easy. But despite some turbulence, Nix continues to display the confidence that forced the Broncos to take him with the 12th overall pick in April’s draft.
After posting an 0-4 touchdown-to-interception ratio in his first three games, Nix threw five touchdowns once in Denver’s final three games. He also ran for three scores this season and had a season-high 61 yards on six carries to end Presen’s loss to the Chargers.
Maximum Sunday looked unpleasant for a long year before the Broncos offense collected a late payment related to Arnold Palmer’s legendary payment that earned him the 1960 United States Visualizable that took place in Denver. However, unlike Palmer, Nix’s overdue comeback did not lead to victory.
The Broncos had five punts and two turnovers in their first seven drives, but finished the game with two touchdowns and a touchdown to pull within one lead of Los Angeles with 2:26 left. So what changed? Los Angeles definitely held off gas, and Nix made them pay with terse passes to Courtland Sutton, Troy Franklin, Devaughn Vele and Javonte Williams.
Across Denver’s final three drives, Nix was 15 of 19 that totaled completions of 29, 37, 20, 20 and 17 yards. He also threw landing passes to Franklin and Sutton.
Trailing by 23, Payton squandered any semblance of a balanced offense. Denver needed trouble, and Nix broke loose in an attempt to take out a disappointed. Playing like this for an entire contest is unrealistic, the final order to finish Sunday’s contest was an example of what Nix will be like when he discovers his rhythm. That order also confirmed the big-play talent of the Broncos’ ever-improving receiving corps.
The malady, on the other hand, was the lack of run assists Nix earned throughout the game, which contributed to the Broncos being just three of eleven in third place. This is not a distant incident, because the Broncos were one of the worst teams in the league this hour and are in 31st place in the league in third place. Denver has to recover in both disciplines if it wants to stay in the playoff race.
Fortunately for the Broncos, they will face a Saints defense that is 30th in the NFL in yards per carry allowed. They are also just 20th in the league in third down defense.
Supper or famine might be an apt strategy to sum up the Saints’ defense, which has fallen to 23rd in the league in terms of points allowed and then ranked in the top 10 in that segment during Dennis Allen’s first two years as head coach. The Saints are second in the NFL in interceptions (10), have a running cast (led by defensive tackle Bryan Bresee and Alontae Taylor) and are third in red zone power.
For Payton’s offense, launching an operational contest will be key Thursday night. Nix must also distribute the ball, which will likely be a problem given the Saints’ penchant for catching opponent passes. That same year, Nix can’t be shy. What is the purpose of adequate protection? After all, you should never bother them to make it to the week?
Prediction
This should be a nifty Thursday night contest, although it could be lacking in execution. This competition will most likely focus on which running contest can start and which quarterback will do a better job of taking care of the ball. Any of them move hand in hand.
Clashes are noticeable in sports activities when placing a bet. Looking at both teams, it appears the Broncos have a lot of huge advantages. They have a top-five defense against a rookie quarterback starting his second career and any of their tall receivers aren’t playing. This is enough to feel a bit of protection when picking the Broncos on the road, except Kamara goes crazy, Rattler’s secondary receivers step up and the defense can get some Nix opportunities.
Payton gets his victory against the team that finished in a championship 15 years ago.
Category: Broncos 27, Saints 20 (hitting the Over prepared at the BetMGM sportsbook)
Premium: Matt Severance, who is on a 21-6 streak in Broncos games, has thrown out his best bets for the 7th hour “Thursday Evening Soccer” contest. Severance is leaning down overall, but who is he backing to ensure? here at SportsLine.
