Broncos Defense Sacks Colts in 34-20 Week 2 Win!

The Colts had been a thorn in the side of the Broncos in recent years. This time around on Sunday the tables were turned. Denver's defense stepped up in the 4th quarter, turned the game around with an Aqib Talib interception return for a touchdown, and then they put it away with none other than Von Miller strip-sacking Andrew Luck late in the game, forcing a fumble, and Shane Ray scooped it up and rumbled into the endzone for the game-clinching score. Denver won 34-20, and the game was close throughout because of the inability of Denver's offense to get touchdowns in the redzone and the ability of Luck to keep his team in the game on his own. The Broncos got some revenge on Luck and the Colts, who had been 3-1 against the Broncos in his short career. Here are my thoughts and observations on the game.............

1) The Broncos offense continues to move the ball up and down the field on opponents so far this season. Against the Colts, the Broncos did the same. They were able to run and throw at their will, but still only put up one offensive touchdown out of the 34 they scored. I liked the run game once again with C.J. Anderson, who rumbled for 74 yards and a touchdown. Devontae Booker had a bounce back game with 51 yards on the ground. The Broncos moved the ball effectively on the first drive, but Brandon McManus missed a 54 yard field goal. The second drive featured a McManus 23 yard field goal. On the fourth drive, the Broncos capped off a 69 yard drive with a Anderson 4 yard TD run. Trevor Siemian got picked off on a WR screen at the Indy 20 on the next drive, but the Broncos got a field goal right before the half on the last drive before the half to make it 13-6 heading into the second half. They got a field goal on their first drive of the 3rd quarter to make it 16-13. They were able to drive for a field goal to make it 26-20 with 1:51 left in the game. The offense had a nice balance, moved at a solid pace, and if they were able to finish off some of these drives with touchdowns, then this game would not have been close at all.

2) I continue to like what I see from Trevor Siemian. He looks poised, in control of the offense, and he threw a lot of good balls on Sunday. His stats weren't outstanding (22-33 for 266 yards 0 TD and 1 INT) but if you watched the game you could see that he played well. His one interception was on a WR screen that Darius Butler read and then picked off, but other than that, Siemian made some big time throws-especially to Demaryius Thomas. He threw the intermediate passes very well, and I love how he got Virgil Green involved on some key drives. I like what I have so far out of Siemian, and I thought he definitely played well.

3) The Broncos defense is not the same as it was last year, but it still a very good and at times dominant defense. They had their moments where they fell asleep on drives, but if it wasn't for Luck bailing out the Colts, this defense would have given up nothing all day to the Colts. In a close game with the Broncos up 3 in the 4th quarter, Talib steps in front of a Luck pass and takes it 46 yards for a touchdown and a 23-13 lead. Then, with the game on the line and the Colts down 26-20, Von Miller does his thing and strip sacks Luck and Shane Ray scoops it up and scores to put the game away for good. I thought they tackled better in this game, harassed Luck with 5 sacks, and got 2 defensive touchdowns. That is a hell of a day in my book. Derek Wolfe was awesome with 1.5 sacks and Miller added 3 sacks. Chris Harris held T.Y. Hilton to only 2 catches when he was guarding him. The Broncos are a defensive team, and once again their defense stepped up to win the game for them.

4) What else can you say about Von Miller? He has 3 sacks in the game, and he essentially wins the game for the Broncos with his strip of Luck at the end. In his last four games including the post season, he has single-handedly won the AFC Championship, the Super Bowl, and this past game. It is unbelievable to watch how he can win a game from a defensive position. He is the most dominant defensive player I've seen since Lawrence Taylor. I'm not kidding. He is that dominant.

5) This game could have easily been a blowout, but the Broncos offensive struggles in the redzone and Luck's brilliance kept the Colts in the game.

6) The game did have some key injuries on the Broncos side of the ball. RT Donald Stephenson left with a calf injury and he could miss a couple of weeks. TE Virgil Green left with a calf injury and he is day-to-day and Demarcus Ware broke a bone in his forearm and he is out 4-6 weeks.

7) The Broncos are 2-0 and when you looked at the schedule before the season, you had to be cautious to think that they would be 2-0 with Cam Newton and Andrew Luck coming to town in back-to-back weeks. Next week comes a big test: Their first road game of the season at Cincy. This will be a big test for young QB Trevor Siemian as he faces a really good defense on the road. With the defense that the Broncos bring to the table, they will have a chance in every game. Go Broncos!