Broncos' Week 9 Rookie to Watch: Albert Okwuegbunam | TE
Because of the toughness of the matchup, last week's rookie to watch was cornerback Michael Ojemudia. The Denver Broncos ended up winning that game, but the rookie struggled.
Despite having a strong debut season overall, the Broncos overcame Ojemudia's down performance vs. the Los Angeles Chargers.
For the Week 9 road bout against the Atlanta Falcons, there are a couple of options once again, in terms of divining which Broncos rookie will key. Both receivers — Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler — will be needed as the Falcons are a team averaging 26.1 points per game — 5.1 points more per contest than the Broncos.
Ojemudia could be tapped again for a similar reason as last week because this is going to be a tough matchup for him whether he is matched up against Julio Jones or Calvin Ridley.
Atlanta's Grady Jarrett is such an underrated interior defensive lineman and he can create a lot of problems, not just for rookie center Lloyd Cushenberry III, but for the Broncos' offense overall. That puts pressure on Cushenberry.
But he's not the rookie to watch this week.
Albert Okwuegbunam | TE
The rookie that really stands out for this game is Okwuegbunam, the tight end. Noah Fant will get the bulk of the Falcons' attention at tight end, which helps Okwuegbunam.
Jake Butt was placed on injured reserve earlier this week and Nick Vannett is battling a foot injury that will open up more snaps for Okwuegbunam. Lock really looks Okwuegbunam's way when he's on the field, but in this game, that connection will need to be red-hot to really help the Broncos' offense exploit the Falcons.
For a deep-dive look at Okwuegbunam's matchup vs. the Falcons, and why he could really be a lynchpin the Broncos building their offensive momentum, check out the video above before clicking onto the next article.
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