Broncos vs. Niners: 5 matchups to monitor

Here are the matchups to keep an eye on in the Broncos' two joint-practice sessions with the Niners.

For close to a month now, the Denver Broncos have spent almost every single day facing the same players over and over. As time has gone on in training camp more fights have started to surface. 

It's clear these players are ready to beat up on someone other than their own teammates. This week, the Broncos kick off joint practices with the San Francisco 49ers ahead of the preseason bout on Monday night. Both defenses should be more than prepared for what the offenses will throw at them, considering Kyle Shanahan has been the mentor for new Broncos' OC Rich Scangarello since 2015. 

There are still plenty that both teams can learn from in these joint practices even with running similar offenses. The individual and group matchups should help give each team a little better picture heading into the season of what they have strengths and weaknesses wise.

Here are five intriguing matchups to pay attention to over the next few days

1. Broncos’ OTs vs. Niners Edge rushers

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The offensive tackles for the Broncos have not had an easy task at all throughout training camp. Bradley Chubb and Von Miller might be the best duo of pass rushers in the league. 

This week doesn’t get much easier. The Niners traded for Dee Ford earlier this offseason and drafted Nick Bosa. Those two are being added to an already solid interior group of Arik Armstead and Solomon Thomas. These four pass-rushers bring a variety of specialties to the table.

Dee Ford is the classic speedster off the edge that is coming off a career year for the Kansas City Chiefs this past season. He gave Garett Bolles plenty of fits last year. 

Bolles had a false step built into his pass-blocking sets that led to him falling behind against speedsters. He has shown improvement working with Mike Munchak this offseason, but this week will be a test to see whether he can consistently show better technique.

Arik Armstead and Solomon Thomas add the power rush element to the picture, resulting in the Broncos' tackles having to prepare to anchor in and get some push in the run game. Nick Bosa as the rookie from all reports has been unblockable so far in training camp for the Niners. 

It doesn’t sound like he will be a go this week after just getting out of a walking boot, but those other three should be plenty to see how much growth the Broncos’ tackles have shown so far this offseason.

2. Broncos’ TEs vs. Niners' LBs

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Unfortunately, Broncos have been hurt at the linebacker position leading to the tight ends making a lot of plays in practice. The question that keeps coming to my mind is whether the TE's success is because of an improved group or because they spend most of practice going against backup (at best) talent at the linebacker level. 

This week, that image flips a bit with the Niners having one of the better linebacker corps  in the NFL.

San Fran brings to the table starters Malcolm Smith (most Bronco fans would love to forget his name), Fred Warner, and Kwon Alexander. Fred Warner was almost a Denver Bronco. 

In the third round of last year's draft, the Broncos were hoping he would fall to them at pick 71, but unfortunately the Niners scooped him up one pick earlier. He had a very strong rookie season and looks like he could be a long-time starter in that Niners defense. 

One of the bigger signings of the offseason for the Niners was the addition of Kwon Alexander. When healthy he has been a very consistent off-ball linebacker that should give the Bronco tight ends plenty of work.

Joe Flacco has been known to depend on his tight end quite a bit. If the Broncos have truly solved this problem with the addition of Noah Fant and the others getting a bit healthy, this Broncos offense might be further along than many around the NFL have thought.

3. Broncos’ CBs vs. Marquise Goodwin 

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This matchup isn’t so much about Goodwin vs. the secondary, but more about preparing for the speed the Chiefs will be throwing at the Broncos this season. The old saying is 'to be the best, you must beat the best' and right now the Chiefs are king of the AFC West. 

Kansas City has added more speed to an already speed filled wide receiver room. No player will mimic the speed of players like Tyreek Hill and Mecole Hardman than that of Marquise Goodwin. He is an Olympic sprinter that can easily take the top off any defense and just won $1 million this offseason winning the 40-yard dash competition, claiming he was the fastest player in the NFL.

The Broncos’ would be wise to test out defensive play-calling geared towards making sure they do not get beaten deep. Kansas City has spent a great deal of this offseason bragging about the high-octane offense they should field this year and it is going to take not only a great game plan but some great play from the secondary to keep it in check. 

The Broncos do not have a lot of speed in the secondary so physical ability will not be enough.

4. Dalton Risner vs. DeForest Buckner 

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Dalton Risner looks like he could have a very bright future ahead of him in the NFL. The Broncos look like they hit a homerun in the secondnd round of this past draft. 

This week will be one of the toughest tests of Risner’s career. There is an easy argument to be made that DeForest Buckner is one of the top-5 interior defensive linemen in all of football. The Broncos do not have a player like him on their roster. His combination of speed/power/size is very tough to find.

If the rookie can come out of these next few practices with positive reviews, it should cement even more how special Dalton Risner could be for the Broncos. The idea that a team could trust an interior guard one-on-one with a player of Buckner’s talent would be huge in how the Broncos can call plays. 

Extra help could go towards the offensive tackles and give Joe Flacco the pocket he needs to be successful this season

5. Vic Fangio vs. Kyle Shanahan

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One could argue a few years ago the Broncos should have hired Kyle Shanahan as the head coach over Vance Joseph. Shanahan has proven to be one of the best offensive minds in all of football. 

The Broncos went with one of the best defensive minds in Vic Fangio this offseason. I’m sure there will be some competition between the two head coaches of who can call a better practice. I expect the actual preseason game to be pretty vanilla, but the practices should see both coaches test out their ability to call situational football.

There is a bit of pride on the line for both coaches. This is the time that if one player or unit wins that doesn’t mean your own teammates lost. Finding success over these next few practices could go a long way to building the confidence of the team and showing the situation is not too big for either coach. 

Kyle Shanahan, I’m sure, is feeling a bit of the hot seat after two straight losing seasons. The team has shown some promise even with their starting quarterback going down, but promise doesn’t mean success. Obviously, for Fangio, he wants to show that all his years of coaching have prepared him to be the man.

Bottom line

The Broncos and Niners are two teams trying to show they are ready to bounce back and be playoff-caliber. There is always added pressure when a team has struggled to find success for multiple years, especially when you factor in that both organizations have been known as some of the best in NFL history.

These practices always seem to have a little extra juice and should be a good indicator of where the Broncos are as a football team. This should help show them where they still need some work and where they can build around to have success this upcoming season and beyond. 

There are some great matchups that will be happening. Personally, the work in the trenches on both sides should be one heck of a battle. Even beyond that though there are a lot of players needing to prove they belong and in the evaluation process before cut down day these practices will go a long ways in helping decide roster spots.

Follow Carl on Twitter @CarlDumlerMHH.