Three Critical Players for Both Packers, Broncos for Mile High Showdown

The Green Bay Packers will face one of their toughest tests of the season on Sunday against the Denver Broncos in a matchup between teams with a legitimate chance of playing each other in the Super Bowl in eight weeks.

There are playoff seeding implications for both teams, as the Broncos (11-2) are deadlocked with the New England Patriots at the top of the AFC and the Packers (9-3-1) find themselves just above the Chicago Bears in the NFC North and just behind the Los Angeles Rams in the fight for the top seed in the NFC.

Here are three key players for both teams as the Packers try to push their winning streak to five games.

Packers-Broncos: Three Key Players for Denver

1. OLB Nik Bonitto

One of the biggest reasons for the Broncos’ success this season is their defense’s ability to keep opposing offenses off-schedule by getting sacks, and that is led by outside linebacker Nik Bonitto.

Bonitto is one of the top pass rushers in the NFL, sitting at a tie with Micah Parsons for third in the league in sacks at 12.5. If not for Myles Garrett’s historic season, Bonitto would likely be near the top of the list to win Defensive Player of the Year.

The Broncos are in the midst of a historic season when it comes to rushing the passer. Their 55 sacks through 13 games have them on pace to tie for the NFL single-season sacks record.

Bonitto has been one of the biggest pieces of the Broncos’ success this season, and he could become a big problem for Jordan Love if his success continues against the Packers.

“Obviously, they’re a very good defense, probably one of the best defenses we’ve seen all year and the numbers all back that,” Love said. “Obviously, the pass rush they have, the sacks they’ve been able to generate, and you look at the defense all across the board, I think they’ve got really good players and a really good scheme, so it will be a good test for us to be able to go out there and see what we can do as an offense.”

2. CB Pat Surtain II

Coming off a season in which he won Defensive Player of the Year, Pat Surtain II is one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL.

Last season, Surtain had four interceptions and 11 passes defensed. PFF charged him with a 71.2 percent catch rate but just 8.6 yards per completion and a 61.1 passer rating. This year, he’s allowed only a 52.2 percent catch rate. He has zero interceptions but 11 passes defensed and a passer rating of 75.5. He’s allowed one touchdown each of the last seasons and has at least 10 passes defensed in all five seasons.

“I think he’s just a smart corner,” quarterback Jordan Love said. “I think you look at his technique and everything that he does, he does it at a very high level. [What’s impressive] is his ability to read what the receivers are doing and just play that sticky coverage.

“There’s sometimes you see on film when he’s breaking on things before the receiver’s even breaking. I think it just goes into his film study, his knowledge of the game and his confidence in himself. I think he does a lot of things at a very high level.”

Luckily for the Packers, Love likes to spread the ball around, targeting 10 different pass catchers last game, since Surtain can take whoever he is guarding out of the game completely.

3. QB Bo Nix

Quarterback Bo Nix has lived up to the expectations he set with his impressive rookie season last year. He has thrown for 2,954 yards and 19 touchdowns with nine interceptions on a 63.2 completion percentage.

While he has benefited from playing with one of the best defenses in the NFL, Nix has been doing what needs to be done for the Broncos to win. He leads the NFL with six game-winning drives and five fourth-quarter comebacks. He continually has come through in big moments, with eight of Denver’s 10 wins during its winning streak being one-score games.

Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) looks downfield against the Las Vegas Raiders. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

While he was not able to score through the air last week for just the second time this season, he completed 31-of-38 passes during last week’s 24-17 win against the Raiders, a season-high 81.8 percent completion rate.

“I remember him being the first QB ever to start as a freshman at Auburn,” Packers defensive end Micah Parsons said. “He’s always been an impressive player. I think he’s taken a big jump in Year 2 in how he protects the ball, not taking sacks, getting rid of the ball. So, it’s going to be a very big challenge for all of us.

“I think Sean Payton’s doing a hell of a job coaching him, putting him in better situations to use his skill-set, whether it’s his legs in the run game, legs in the pass game, so we’ve got our hands full.”

Packers-Broncos: Three Key Players for Green Bay

1. QB Jordan Love

Jordan Love has been playing at a near-MVP level during the Packers’ win streak, completing 62 percent of his passes for 781 yards and nine touchdowns over his last four games. He has thrown seven touchdown passes in his last two games.

If Love can have a great game against the Broncos, it could be the key to beating the seemingly unbeatable Broncos. The Broncos have given up 300 passing yards in a game along with at least one touchdown just twice this season, and those games became their only two losses of the season.

All of it comes down to protection. In his last two games, when he threw four touchdown passes against the Lions and three against the Bears, he was sacked only once. If Love is allowed to stand in the pocket and make big throws like he has been for his latest stretch of games, the Packers will have a much better chance at taking down the Broncos defense.

2. WR Christian Watson

Christian Watson has been on a tear since coming back from his ACL tear. He is averaging 64.5 yards per game in his seven games on just 25 receptions, averaging 18.1 yards per catch, which is second in the NFL.

Green Bay Packers receiver Christian Watson runs the ball in for a touchdown during a football game against the Chicago Bears. | Sarah Kloepping/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

He is already one touchdown short of the team lead with five, tied with Romeo Doubs. He has scored three times in his last two games, two which came on explosive catches against the Bears.

Watson will need to continue to step up, especially this week against the Broncos’ ninth-ranked passing defense. It may be more difficult for him to make big plays down the field as Jordan Love will likely have less time to throw, but if he can continue to make big plays in the short passing games, he could continue to be one of the Packers’ biggest weapons.

3. DE Micah Parsons

He may not have been able to bring down Caleb Williams last week, but Micah Parsons was a nightmare for the Bears. PFF credited him with seven pressures for the second week in a row.

He paired his seven pressures with two QB hits and five hurries, so while he didn’t show up in the categories that normally pop up on the stat sheet, he had an impactful game against Chicago.

“Micah Parsons didn’t have a sack in the game last week (but) Micah Parsons had an unbelievable game last week,” defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley said. “I mean, he had totally affected the game, but he didn’t have a sack.”

If Parsons can have an even better game this week to try and match the strength of the Broncos’ defensive line, it could be the difference between a win and a loss for the Packers. Bo Nix has been held without a passing touchdown just twice this season, and he was sacked multiple times in both of those games.

With Parsons due for a great game, he could be a difference-maker, even with the Broncos offensive line playing so well this season. Neither left tackle Garrett Bolles nor center Luke Wattenberg have allowed a sack.

Asked about the chess-game part of beating blocking schemes, Parsons said:

“There’s some strategy but the one thing that’s different between chess and the game is you know what your pawns and your knights and your queens and your rooks can do. It’s hard when you’ve got a queen that can go everywhere, you know what I mean? This ain’t that. You can control this one.

“I don’t got to worry about a pawn slowing me down if I want to capture a pawn because it could take my queen. None of your pawns are taking me. This is real life. Strategy is strategy, and strategy’s good until you get punched. That’s always been my motto.”

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