Patriots at Broncos

Patriots, with two impressive playoff wins, take to the road to play the Broncos in Denver. Back at full strength on offense, they had no trouble against a KC team with an excellent pass defense. Can they do they same against the Broncos?

By some measures, the Broncos lead the league in pass D. For example, they lead in defensive yards per pass attempt, allowing opponents just 5.11 yards. That's stingy. See weekly graph, Denver on Yards per Pass Attempt, below. Maybe they slow down Pats' QB Brady and WR Edelman where the Chiefs couldn't. But maybe they don't.

While Denver boasts a league-leading pass defense, by comparison, their offense is rather modest. Going against Coach Belichick's Patriots' offense is always a most difficult task. The Chiefs struggled and the Broncos could find it tough sledding as well. See the Broncos on Yards per Pass Attempt, charted below.

In Denver's favor is the homefield advantage; they are extra tough at home. Still, the computer projects the Patriots by 1 at Mile High. I'll go along.

Bill Sanders for BudGoodeSports.com
dr.bill@wrsanders.com

Copyright 2016, BudGoodeSports.com. All rights reserved.