A win over the Ravens begins with stopping Lamar Jackson, ends with beating the blitz

It’s going to require a full team effort on this one.

The problem with playing the Ravens is there are few – if any – true weak spots.

The offense is shifty – Von Miller called it “unique” and Vic Fangio called the run game “upper level.”

The defense is a relentless, blitz-happy unit.

And special teams is strong.

So how do the Broncos attack this three-headed monster?

The Broncos’ quarterback may not know the answer, but he definitely has the right approach – treat it like a test. Study, prepare…then perform to your strengths.

“I look at it as you respect the game, and on any Sunday, any team can be beat,” Teddy Bridgewater said. “We go out there on Sundays and we don’t get caught up in who it is that we’re playing. It’s all about trying to make this team better and trying to move in the right direction.”

But obviously moving toward another win will undoubtedly get more challenging this week.

“We’ll get an opportunity this Sunday against the Ravens, a team that’s been winning for the past couple years and has been to the playoffs,” Bridgewater added. “It’ll be a true test, for sure, but all the games that we’ve played have been tests also.”

Containing Lamar Jackson

Not only is it tough to play against Lamar Jackson, it’s nearly impossible to find a player who can emulate No. 8 and help the defense prepare for his speed and agility.

“The guy, however fast he is — nobody ever got a 40 [yard dash] time on him — but my eyes tell me he’s really fast, and he’s shifty and elusive,” Fangio said. “This guy is so special and the thing that gets lost because he’s so spectacular running the ball, is this guy can throw it. He’s a complete quarterback and he’s tough. He’s one of a kind, thank God.”

Ed Donatell called covering Jackson the “biggest discrepancy in schemes that you could find in the NFL.

“It’s probably the biggest discrepancy in schemes that you’ll find in the league when you have to play their whole attack and play the athlete. He’s special, he’s unique. We have to change how we play. It’s a challenge for us as coaches and players to be something different to go against their attack because it’s unique in what’s required.”

Pat Shurmur, who remembers scouting Jackson back in 2018 while head coach of the Giants, noted he’s been amazing throughout his college and pro career.

“He’s done some amazing things to help his team win a lot of games,” he said. “He’s a tough guy to stop.”

But the Broncos will have to stop Jackson if they want any chance at a victory, so Donatell said a spy may be used occasionally.

“There are times when there will be people looking after him, but everybody has that responsibility—all eleven people,” Donatell said. “There’s a second play that you’re going to have to play when he gets off rhythm, and you need great discipline in those times, too. It’s really both.”

Von Miller – the recently named AFC Defensive Player of the Month – pointed out it will be important for the Broncos to play “their” style of football.

“He can run, he can throw, he can do all types of stuff. He can shake guys in the hole and outside the hole,” Miller said. “If you get him in space, it’s a nightmare for anybody….They pride themselves on being physical and being a run-first team. We have to match them. We have to come out there, play our style of football and just take it one play at a time.”

Handling the blitz

One of Bridgewater’s strengths has been recognizing pressure pre-snap. That will bode well on Sunday.

“He’s got a good feel pre-snap where it might be coming from,” Fangio said, adding that if Bridgewater gets surprised by a blitz, he doesn’t panic. “He has an innate ability to react to what might surprise him, and he’s calm. He doesn’t rush his decisions. He’s calm under duress and that pays off.”

Bridgewater already knows he’s going to have to get the ball out quick this weekend though.

“Yeah 100 percent. They bring a lot of pressures, and they’ll man you up on the outside,” Bridgewater explained. “They’ll bring pressures and kind of challenge us on the outside to go out there and make plays.”

But once again, for Bridgewater, it’ll be about the preparation.

“Like I said, we’re going to prepare the same way we prepare every week and put ourselves in position to go out there and be successful,” Bridgewater added. “I’m very confident that our room is going to prepare like we’re supposed to, so that Sunday, we can go out and play fast and have a lot of fun.”

Battle of the kickers?

Last week Ravens’ kicker Justin Tucker broke the NFL record for longest field goal in a game-winning 66-yarder, something Broncos’ kicker Brandon McManus has been pining to do for years.

And rumor has it that Tucker is aiming to break his own record this weekend at Mile High where the air is thin and the ball travels far.

What fun would it be if McManus finally got his shot at the record and it was for a game winner against the team whose kicker would have owned the record for less than a week?

Glorious.

Broncos News

After traveling similar paths to NFL, Teddy Bridgewater and Lamar Jackson set to face off for first time
“It’s a unique bond. We’re both from South Florida — 32nd pick in the draft. [We] both have strong mothers. [We] have so much in common, and I’m happy for all the success that he’s had in his career,” Bridgewater said.

Broncos guards Quinn Meinerz, Netane Muti inching closer to starts vs. Ravens in Week 4
Quinn Meinerz, Netane Muti inching closer to getting starts for the Broncos against the Baltimore Ravens as Dalton Risner and Graham Glasgow didn’t practice on Thursday.

Lamar Jackson’s FIRST 1000 passes mark NFL’s greatest QB start ever — seriously
Yet his early career success gets ignored… Hmm, wonder why

NFL: Ravens’ Justin Tucker may try to break field goal record in Denver
Justin Tucker and Denver’s thin air could be a historic combination.

‘This is a playoff game early in the season’: Von Miller, Broncos face big test vs. Ravens
Against Baltimore, Denver should be able to closely replicate the intensity that would accompany a game in January.

Von Miller on facing Ravens: Time for Broncos ‘to show what we’ve got against a worthy opponent’
It’s been a while since the Broncos were in a big game. They’re in one this weekend against the Ravens and former MVP Lamar Jackson. It has Denver LB Von Miller telling his teammates “it’s really like a playoff game.”

5 Broncos that must step up following brutal wave of injuries –
Probably more than five, actually.

NFL News

Sports Gambling Is a Disaster Waiting to Happen – The Atlantic
Betting on Tom Brady’s next completion may sound like harmless fun. But it’s not.

NFL Week 4 Defense Rankings | NFL News, Rankings and Statistics | PFF
The Denver Broncos, headlined by edge defender Vonn Miller and rookie cornerback Patrick Surtain II, among others, lead the way for the best NFL defenses heading into Week 4 of the 2021 season.

2021 NFL season, Week 4: What we learned from Bengals’ win over Jaguars on Thursday night
Joe Burrow and Trevor Lawrence each showcased their stellar arms and phenomenal potential, but it was Burrow who had the ball last and drove the Bengals to a victory, setting up kicker Evan McPherson for a 35-yard game-winning field goal in a 24-21 Cincin

Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar to perform at Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show
Pepsi, the NFL and Roc Nation announced Thursday that Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Kendrick Lamar will perform at the Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show at SoFi Stadium on Feb. 13.