The rivalry between the Bills and the Broncos goes back to the AFL and the two have shared memorable moments throughout the years. Their last matchup was in Week 3 of the 2017 season, which resulted in a 26-16 victory for Buffalo.
This week the two teams are facing off with two contrasting seasons. The Bills are sitting at 7-3 and on the verge of a playoff birth. The Broncos though are at a disappointing 3-7.
Records aside, it will be the games within that games that will help us find the winner.
With that, here are five key matchups to watch in Sunday’s Bills-Broncos meeting:
Phillip Lindsay vs. Tremaine Edmunds
Second-year running back Phillip Lindsay has made a splash since his arrival in the NFL, amassing 1,688 yards, 5.2 yards per carry and 14 touchdowns a a rookie. Now, Lindsay is the focal point of the struggling Denver offense.
This season Lindsay is averaging an impressive 4.9 yards per carry, which should unnerve Buffalo’s shaky run defense. The Bills’ rush defense has allowed 106.3 yards per game, which is 18th in the NFL. The Bills should be prepared for heavy doses of Lindsay, due to how poor the Broncos passing offense has been this season sitting at 25th in the league with just 206.6 yards per game.
While the Bills rush defense has had poor form recently, they bounced back against Miami, holding the Dolphins rushing attack to just 23 yards. The Bills were led by linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, who had 12 tackles against Miami.
Edmunds was sent on more blitzes versus Miami than the rest of the season. These blitzes let him use his natural athletic talent to reach the running back in the backfield, or at the line of scrimmage. He blew up runs on a consistent basis which turned Miami into a one dimensional offense.
If Edmunds can have a similar performance on Sunday, he can force quarterback Brandon Allen to try to beat the Bills secondary.
Big fan of the #Broncos shotgun toss for Phillip Lindsay, makes you pay for overplaying the gun runs. pic.twitter.com/AnDwcokbbp
— Joe Rowles (@JoRo_NFL) November 17, 2019