Denver Broncos: The Preview

Edition #709

Good morning! ☕

I’m not sure what it is about this Denver Broncos game, but it makes me feel uneasy. Maybe it’s because we’re the heavy favourite? Maybe it’s because this is a game that historically we would go out and lose. Winning record, coming off a key victory over a division opponent and facing a rookie QB in our own backyard.

I think it’s going to take some time for us as Jets fans (sufferers) to shake off the feelings of old. If the Jets go out there and handle business on Sunday maybe I can start believing that this year is different, this team is difference and maybe the ending will be different too.

Today we’re going to complete our look at the Denver Broncos. But first, here is my article for the official Jets website here in the UK, all about Tyler Conklin.

🟢 The Jets not only have the best 3rd down offence through the first three games of the season, but their red-zone offence is inside the top-5, converting 75% of all trips. "Obviously the playcalling changes once you get in that area of the field and then it's just about execution," rookie RB Braelon Allen said. "Obviously having A-Rod (Aaron Rodgers) is a big part of being able to execute, but everybody has to do their job. The game doesn't necessarily change. I think we're just all executing when the times called. When in the high red zone, it doesn't feel much different, but once you get down inside the 10-yard line, the 5, that's when it's like there's no more looking for the big play since you can't go too far. Everything is downhill in terms of running the ball. Every yard is magnified, so try to get vertical."

⚪ Here’s what HC Robert Saleh had to say about Bo Nix - "He's a very talented young man," HC Robert Saleh said of the rookie signal-caller. "Very quick decision maker, great with his feet. They've done a really nice job. I feel like he found a little confidence against Tampa and you can see him evolving from the Seattle game to Pittsburgh to last week, in terms of what he can and can't do in the league. He's a quick learner and very athletic. Very gritty, tough kid, but he's got a good future ahead of him."

🟢 Quincy Williams was asked about the early season issues with penalties - "It's still early in the season," LB Quincy Williams said. "It's one of those things where you got a lot of guys who didn't play in the preseason, so just getting the fundamentals down when you're getting tired and stuff like that. Just trust the process. We talk about the penalties, we bring awareness to that. After that, it's just getting the game down pat."

⚪ It’ll be a big day on Sunday for rookie tackle Olu Fashanu who will be making his first professional start filling in for injured RT Morgan Moses - "It's definitely a huge responsibility protecting someone like Aaron," Fashanu said. "But again. just like you said, just the way that he's able to instill confidence inside the offense. Obviously, I still feel a lot of responsibility, but he's just the type of guy that really gets you riled up and ready to go."

🟢 PFF always like to bring their power rankings out late, which means I often miss it in the Power Rankings newsletter, so here it is. Although with them having us lower than the Dolphins, Bengals and Cowboys, I’m not sure we should be paying too much attention to it. “18th Aaron Rodgers and the Jets’ offense are going from strength to strength, and Gang Green has won two on the bounce. The defense sits 11th in EPA per play, while the offense has boosted itself to eighth (0.069). Rodgers has looked great, too, earning an 82.8 passing grade.”

⚪ According to PFF’s methodology, Aaron Rodgers is the third best QB in football right now, trailing only Derek Carr and Brock Purdy. Sam Darnold is 4th, Justin Fields is 5th and Geno Smith is 7th.

🟢 Using that same methodology, the Jets have the 6th best offensive line heading into week four, “Right tackle Morgan Moses left Week 3’s game with a knee injury and was replaced by Olu Fashanu. The rookie played 14 snaps and earned a 70.8 PFF overall grade, the second-highest score on the Jets' offensive line. Center Joe Tippmann continues his strong sophomore season. The Wisconsin product’s 85.8 PFF overall grade in the win against New England was a career-high mark, and his 82.9 PFF overall grade through three weeks ranks fourth among centers.”

⚪ Sticking with PFF for one more today, as they have started tracking cornerbacks lockdown percentage, which is as it sounds, a metric to determine how good a CB is at preventing his receiver from getting open. Sauce Gardner is 10th with a 64.29% lockdown score, whereas interestingly Pat Surtain II is all the way down in 27th at 41.67%. D.J Reed is 12th at 63.64%.

🟢 I don’t know why, but a lot of NFL players seem to have a real issue with Sauce and spend more time trying to talk his game down, but Pat Surtain isn’t one of them. Surtain said: "I have nothing but respect of [Gardner's] game and I am sure he feels the same way. We both compete and obviously we both want to be the best, but we have a shared belief and respect in each other at the same time."

⚪ Sauce certainly does have the same level of respect - "I am always watching film in general and [Surtain] is always showing up on there," Gardner said on Thursday. "He is a dawg, he has been doing this for a little minute, every week it is a highlight, even when the ball not getting thrown his way, he a lock down cornerback for sure and he just got paid, he is well deserving. He deserved that for sure, yeah, he liked that for sure."

🟢 This was a good quote from Nathaniel Hackett when asked about Garrett and teams looking to take him away - "Garrett's an elite football player in this league. We want to get him the ball, but if something happens, or he's taken away, the ability for the quarterback to progress and then other people make plays, allows us to get another opportunity to potentially target him. But for us, it's about a system. It's about a system. And he might be Number 1, he might get it. He might get it, he might not. He might be Number 2, and he might get it. And everybody thought he was Number 1. So it's just about the flow of the offense, and when Aaron is going, I think that's the most important thing, because it gives us a lot of opportunities."

The Jets have a good offence. Repeat that to yourself until you believe it.