Mile High Roundtable: Broncos vs. Dolphins | Week 11 | Predictions & Picks
James Campbell (@JamesC_MHH) 5-4: This game could get really ugly for the Denver Broncos, regardless of who is starting at quarterback. Miami Dolphins' head coach Brian Flores should be getting a lot more consideration for Coach of the Year honors, while DE Emmanuel Ogbah is having a good season. Miami's defense is simple, but effective and ferocious, with lots of post-snap movement and zero blitzes. The defensive players know their roles. With Denver's QB struggling to call the protection and identify the blitz, as well as communication issues on the O-line, this is a problem. The Broncos will hold their own against Miami's offense for the most part, but I don't see Denver winning on special teams or on offense, and eventually, Miami will be able to put up a lot of points, even if it doesn't have the yards. Tua Tagovailoa has shown signs of competency but Vic Fangio's defense should be the rookie QB's toughest test. The only chance for the Broncos is to produce a clean game.
Pick: Dolphins 38, Broncos 13
Josh Carney (@ByJoshCarney) 5-4: At home against a rookie quarterback making his fourth career start should be a huge plus for the Broncos this week. It isn’t, though. Tua is playing really good football, the Dolphins' run game looks solid, and the defense is on quite the run in Miami. This feels like a game in which Flores woefully out-coaches Fangio.
Pick: Dolphins 28, Broncos 16
Keith Cummings (@KeithC_NFL) 4-5: The season reached the pivot point; the Broncos are so poor on offense that it's impossible to really pick them. The Dolphins are well-coached and confident at the moment. Drew Lock might not suit up, but in truth, it makes little difference in this one. The Dolphins get up early on Sunday and the Broncos fade away as this long season gets a whole lot longer.
Pick: Dolphins 31, Broncos 14
Carl Dumler (@CarlDumlerMHH) 6-3: It's tough to see a path to victory for Denver in this one. Lock could miss another game which would mean the struggling Broncos' offense would have to roll with Brett Rypien. Rypien is a smart kid, so I do expect him to have a little success early on in the game as Miami tries to figure out what the Broncos are doing with him under center but in the end, a couple of second-half turnovers dooms Denver as the Dolphins take advantage of a short field and win.
Pick: Dolphins 30, Broncos 20
Thomas Hall (@ThomasHallNFL) 4-5: This game is a tale of two teams going in opposite directions. Early in the season, this Dolphins matchup looked like a win for the Broncos on paper. Today, it clearly does not. There is so much going wrong with the Broncos in all three phases while the Dolphins seem to be dialed in since their quarterback change. With all the injuries to the Broncos, the Dolphins should have little trouble cruising to victory.
Pick: Dolphins 31, Broncos 17
Chad Jensen (@ChadNJensen) 5-4: While I won't say that I'm off the Lock train, I have to acknowledge that this Broncos squad is so bad in so many different ways that it has become impossible to predict with even a modicum of accuracy what is going to unfold on gameday. We'll see whether the Broncos bear down and stand behind Lock at this pivotal moment, as the team seems to be waffling in its support of the embattled QB — but either way, I don't see Lock suddenly turning the ship around this week against an underrated Dolphins' defense. Not with Pat Shurmur designing the game-plan and calling the plays. Coach Fangio thought that Shurmur would be the 'head coach' of the offense, so to speak, and the right guy to serve as the Broncos' steward in developing Lock through his second-year NFL learning curve. But the early returns absolutely scream that Shurmur is not the man for the job. To beat Miami, the Broncos will have to establish the running game but if Shurmur has proved anything over the last quarter of the season, it's that he can't be trusted to feed this offense's play-makers with consistency. Whether it's Lock or Rypien under center, I expect to see yet another lopsided offensive showing with little by way of balance and no direction or identity. Fangio's defense will confound Tua early on but when the Broncos' offense fails to show any signs of life yet again, it'll be a matter of course before the unit throws in the towel emotionally. This one could get ugly.
Pick: Dolphins 30, Broncos 17
Trevor Judge (@TrevorJudge) 5-4: If there’s one thing the Dolphins love doing this year, it’s bringing a heavy pass rush on defense. And one thing (of many) the Broncos' offense has done poorly this year is pick up the blitz. Expect Flores to dial up the pressure and make life uncomfortable for Rypien and/or Lock. The path to victory for the Broncos is going to be heavily dependent on their success in the run game — on both sides of the ball. I can envision a scenario where the Broncos win this game, but I’ll just say this — it’s not something I’d be putting money on. Maybe Denver bounces back in a big way after being embarrassed against the Raiders, but it just seems more likely we’ll see more of the same this week.
Pick: Dolphins 27, Broncos
Zack Kelberman (@KelbermanNFL) 5-4: It’s hard to render a pick — and even more difficult to predict a win — when you can’t trust the Broncos’ head coach, offensive coordinator, quarterback, or offensive line. Not against this Dolphins team, this defense. Whether it’s Lock or Rypien under center makes little difference to the end result. It could be a long afternoon at Mile High, the last time fans can bear witness to this tragedy in-person.
Pick: Dolphins 26, Broncos 13
Nick Kendell (@NickKendellMHH) 5-4: Denver is going down the toilet quickly. With Lock injured and facing one of the best up-and-coming defenses in football under the watchful eye of Coach Flores, I expect another terrible showing by the Broncos' offense and a mediocre showing by a defeated defense. The pit of misery only gets deeper and wider.
Pick: Dolphins 30, Broncos 17
Bob Morris (@BobMorrisSports) 7-2: The Dolphins were a rebuilding team last season and, thus far, it appears their approach is paying off. Some people raised their eyebrows when the Dolphins replaced Ryan Fitzpatrick with Tua when they were in the playoff hunt, but Tua is playing well and the Dolphins still look like a playoff contender. The Broncos, meanwhile, have injuries piling up, certain players who have missed time haven’t looked particularly good, players who can provide a spark aren’t able to because other players aren’t executing, while Lock has taken several steps backward with his development. Blame who you want, but the Broncos just aren’t a good team and it’s hard to see them getting a win over a Dolphins squad that has kept most of its players healthy and those players are executing. Until the Broncos show they can execute for four quarters, I can’t buy into them winning a game at this point.
Pick: Dolphins 24, Broncos 13
Luke Patterson (@LukePattersonLP) 6-3: Rypien is likely to get his second NFL start but his ability to read the defense is a small breath of fresh of air. However, expect him to throw at least one interception with his lack of arm strength. There could also be a special teams touchdown for the Dolphins. The Broncos' defense flutters and gives up yards in the run game, which will set up some dink and dunk passes. Stack 'em up, another loss.
Pick: Dolphins 33, Broncos 17
Lance Sanderson (@SandersonMHH) 6-3: One of the worst aspects of the Broncos' offense is identifying blitz packages and setting up protection schemes. With the Dolphins blitzing on 41.6 percent of their defensive plays, this one gets out of hand quickly. With Shelby Harris once again unable to play, the Broncos' rushing defense has no answer for a balanced Dolphins offensive attack, and Denver loses its third straight.
Pick: Dolphins 24, Broncos 10
Erick Trickel (@ErickTrickel) 4-5: This is really simple. The Broncos turn the ball over a lot and the Dolphins take it away a lot. While the Dolphins' offense will struggle, they get more opportunities as the Broncos' quarterback, whether it's Lock or Rypien, throws multiple interceptions and sees another turnover via a fumble. Miami walks away with this one.
Pick: Dolphins 31, Broncos 13
What are your predictions for Week 11? Sound off in the comment section below!
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