NFL Week 7 Preview: San Francisco 49ers vs. Denver Broncos
By Andrew Dill
Aug 17, 2014; Santa Clara, CA, USA; General view of the line of scrimmage as Denver Broncos long snapper Aaron Brewer (46) snaps the ball against the San Francisco 49ers in the inaugural football game at Levi
Potential Super Bowl match-up? Quite possibly. The San Francisco 49ers come to the Mile High City Sunday night to take on the Denver Broncos in one of the more intriguing match-ups during week seven of the National Football League season. San Francisco collected a 31-17 win over the St. Louis Rams on Monday night while the Broncos defeated the New York Jets by the same score as well Sunday afternoon.
What: NFL Week 7 Preview: San Francisco 49ers (4-2) vs. Denver Broncos (4-1)
When: Sunday, October 19th
Where: Sports Authority Field (Denver, Colorado)
Time: 8:30 PM EST, 6:30 PM MST
TV: NBC
Denver is coming off a 31-17 victory over the desperate New York Jets, looking to improve with one of the top defenses coming to town. Quarterback Peyton Manning recorded three touchdown passes against New York, two going to Julius Thomas while the other went to Demaryius Thomas. Manning, sitting at 506 touchdown passes, is now two touchdown passes away from tying Brett Favre‘s record of 508; three away from breaking it. Manning will have a chance to do so this Sunday.
Ronnie Hillman and Denver’s offensive line revitalized the run-game for the time being. Hillman rushed for a career-high 100 yards on 24 attempts while back-up Juwan Thompson carried the ball eight times, resulting in 38 yards. Who knows what Denver will get when Montee Ball comes back healthy, but Hillman and Thompson must be able to keep it up to prevent Denver from being one-dimensional; example: Super Bowl.
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San Francisco’s game looked awfully familiar to the one Denver played Sunday afternoon. They too would record a pick-six top the game off, defeating the Rams by the final score of 31-17. Colin Kaepernick looked good Monday night, throwing for over 343 yards on 22-of-36 passing, notching three touchdown passes — all three to different receivers (Michael Crabtree, Brandon Lloyd, and Anquan Boldin).
In order for Denver to be successful Sunday night, they must keep a spy on Kaepernick. Denver witnessed first-hand what happens when you let a scrambling quarterback (Russell Wilson) dictate the way the offense moves the ball. Denver ranks fourth in the NFL in stopping the run, allowing just 76.8 yards on the ground. Stopping the run just doesn’t refer to Kaepernick, but Frank Gore as well. Gore struggled against a good front-seven in St. Louis, scrapping just 38 yards on 16 carries.
Broncos linebacker Danny Trevathan was placed on the IR after re-injuring his left knee in Sunday’s game vs. Jets. The team believes he will be reactivated prior to their week 15 match-up against the division rival San Diego Chargers (Dec. 14). Denver will look to Brandon Marshall to plug the hole yet again, which he has done an excellent job thus far.
Worth Nothing:
- Denver played San Francisco during week two of the preseason, defeating the 49ers 34-0. But hey, that’s preseason.
Kickoff between the San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos is scheduled for 8:30 PM EST, 6:30 PM MST and will be televised on NBC (Sunday Night Football).