The Denver Broncos(3-7) will host the Los Angeles Chargers (4-7) on Sunday, Dec. 1 at 4:25 p.m. ET at Empower Field at Mile High. The game will air regionally on CBS. Check out our quick preview of the contest below.
Broncos’ keys to victory: Denver’s defense needs to force Chargers QB Phillip Rivers into making mistakes. The Broncos’ defense has been a thorn in Rivers’ side his entire career. In 28 career games against Denver, Rivers has thrown 29 interceptions. The veteran QB has a losing record (13-15) against the Broncos and threw no touchdown passes and two interceptions when these two teams met on Oct. 6. Denver has rattled Rivers in the past by generating a pass rush and getting in the QB’s face. That should be the goal again on Sunday. On offense, the Broncos should keep things simple for young QB Brandon Allen, who has played well as a fill-in starter for the injured Joe Flacco. If Allen wants to fend off Drew Lock and keep his starting job, he’ll need to have a turnover-free game against Los Angeles.
Chargers’ keys to victory: Broncos WR Courtland Sutton has emerged as Allen’s favorite target, so L.A.’s secondary should focus on shutting him down. The Vikings had success two weeks ago when they double-teamed Sutton in the second half of a 27-23 win over Denver. The Chargers could follow Minnesota’s lead by having CB Casey Hayward and a safety follow Suton wherever he goes on the field. On offense, Los Angeles needs to feed RB Melvin Gordon and not abandon the run game. When the Broncos beat the Chargers 20-13 in Week 5, Gordon was given just 12 carries. L.A. needs to get the ground game going by continuing to give Gordon touches, taking some pressure off of Rivers.
Matchup to watch: Chargers TE Hunter Henry vs. Broncos defense. Henry was still sidelined with a knee injury when L.A. faced Denver last month and it showed. The Broncos’ defense held Rivers to a passer rating of 58.6 and Virgil Green led Chargers TEs with one catch for five yards. Henry is a much bigger threat to create plays than Green and Denver’s defense will need to be aware of him at all times.
Who wins? Both of these teams are longshots to make the playoffs so they might be playing for pride more than anything else on Sunday. Los Angeles will have something to prove after losing at home in October and the Broncos always put up a good fight in Denver. Broncos, 24-17.
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