4 Things To Watch For As The Denver Broncos Return From Bye Week Against New England Patriots
DENVER (CBS4) - The Denver Broncos (1-3) will finally be back on the football field, as take travel to they travel to Foxborough to take on the New England Patriots (2-2). The game was originally scheduled for last weekend, but it was postponed due to a coronavirus outbreak with the Patriots.
Here are the four things to watch for in Sunday's game.
Broncos Road Woes in New England
New England has been a tough place for the Broncos to play as they have lost five-straight at Gillette Stadium.
The last time Denver beat the New England on the road was in 2006 when the Broncos won 17-7. Since Gillette Stadium opened in 2002, the Broncos are 2-5. To put matters worse, the games haven't been close, as the Patriots have beaten the Broncos by an average margin of 20.8 points.
Broncos Must Take Care of the Football
In the Broncos win against the New York Jets, they committed three turnovers, which has been a problem for the team all season. Denver has a -6 turnover margin, which is the third-worst in the NFL (30th). Denver has turned the ball over eight times, with six coming from interceptions and two on fumbles.
Will Cam Newton or Stephon Gilmore Play on Sunday?
The Patriots are expected to get two quarterback Cam Newton and cornerback Stephon Gilmore back in the lineup on Sunday after both had bouts with the coronavirus. Newton returned to practice on Thursday for the first time after testing positive for COVID-19 on Oct. 3. With him in the lineup, the Patriots offense is night and day. In the three games Newton started, the Patriots average 29 points a game. In the one game he missed, they put only 10 points on the board.
Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore tested positive for COVID-19 on Oct. 6, and he's is the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Gilmore has 11 tackles, an interception and a forced fumble this season. The Patriots have an opportunistic defense have forcing eight turnovers, which is the sixth best in NFL. They also have a solid defense allowing 233.8 passing yards (12th in NFL) and 349 total yards (11th in NFL).
Jerry Jeudy on the Cusp of NFL History
Broncos rookie wide receiver Jerry Jeudy finally got into the end zone last week with a ridiculous catch against the Jets. Jeudy has 15 catches for 234 yards and a touchdown in the first four games. He needs 50 receiving yards against the Patriots to become the third player since 1970 to record at least 50 yards in each of his first five games to start a career. Terry Glenn reached the feat with New England in 1996 and Terry McLaurin did so with the Washington Football Team in 2019.
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He also 66 yards to become the second Broncos rookie WR to reach 300 receiving yards by his fifth game. Former Broncos wide receiver Eddie Royal reached this mark during his rookie season in 2008 with 321 receiving yards by his fifth game.
