Denver Broncos Week 7: Proofs, Petitions and Predictions

The Denver Broncos are in primetime tonight as they take on the New Orleans Saints in “The Big Easy.” In this week’s edition of Proofs, Petitions, and Predictions, we will look at the contributing factors that will determine if the Denver Broncos receive some southern hospitality from the Saints or if they will be singing the blues on their way back west.

Proofs

Sean Payton was the head coach of the New Orleans Saints for 16 years, and this is the first time that he will return to the Superdome since he left that job three years ago. In his tenure in New Orleans, he had a tremendous amount of success, including winning the first Super Bowl in New Orleans franchise history. Much of his success was linked to future Hall of Fame Quarterback Drew Brees, who will be inducted into the New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame at halftime of the Thursday Night game.

Will Sean Payton and the Denver Broncos be able to overcome the emotion of the evening and take advantage of a New Orleans team that is banged up and will be missing several key players? Thursday Night’s game falls completely on the shoulders of Head Coach Sean Payton. He knows the Saints better than he does the Broncos, most likely. Payton needs to prove that he is the one who can lead the Broncos back to the playoffs and Super Bowl Contention. The process continues tonight in a game in which the Denver Broncos are favored to win.

Petitions

Insanity can be defined as extreme foolishness or irrationality. Or, according to Rita Mae Brown, mystery novelist (some argue for Albert Einstein), insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

The Denver Broncos offense has been doing the same thing over and over again in the first half of nearly every game. What they have been doing is, well, nothing. They have not been able to produce any kind of production (if the Tampa Bay game is taken out of the equation).

Payton is also the play-caller for the Denver Broncos, and he must begin to show that he can adapt his system to his players, not the players to the system. He has shown glimpses of this skill in the second half of games as he has given Bo Nix the freedom to play football. Can he start the game tonight with the same mindset and let Bo play? Payton needs to take off the reins as he did in the fourth quarter against the Chargers. That quarter led to two touchdowns and a field goal.

Predictions

Both teams will be charged with emotion during the game, and it will be interesting to see how they handle the pageantry of the evening. New Orleans Head Coach Dennis Allen worked as a defensive coordinator under Payton for several years, and that bodes well for the Broncos. Payton knows the defensive scheme, the players, the organization, and how to beat the Saints.

The Denver Broncos will be determined to get back to winning football, and Payton wants to win this one badly. The Broncos will come out throwing the ball against a beat-up Saints secondary and the defense, even without Patrick Surtain II, will harass rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler and will not relent. Denver is poised for a resounding victory tonight.