The Buffalo Bills are running away with the top seed in the AFC East, but they still one more win to lock the division’s No. 1 spot up. They could get that this coming Saturday against the Denver Broncos, who are looking to build more positives heading into their early offseason.
By dismantling the Pittsburgh Steelers last week in a 26-15 home win, the Bills proved what many already knew: that Buffalo is an elite team and a serious contender to win the Super Bowl. Buffalo’s defense was on point in the Steelers game, as the Bills intercepted Ben Roethlisberger twice and held Pittsburgh’s backfield to only 47 rushing yards on 17 carries. That’s a high-powered Steelers offense that Buffalo slowed down, so expectations of them bottling up Denver is unsurprisingly high. Denver is only 29th in the league with 19.8 points per game. The Broncos are also known for their disjointed attack that often results in turnovers. In fact, the Broncos are averaging 2.2 turnovers per contest — the worst mark in the NFL. Conversely, Buffalo is fifth with 1.6 takeaways per game.
The Bills are 3-0 against the spread in their last three home games.
Surprise! Drew Lock didn’t record a turnover in Denver’s 32-27 win over the Carolina Panthers on the road last Sunday. It was the first time since Week 1 that Lock did not cough the ball up, so it’s a notable accomplishment of the still-developing quarterback. Lock flourished in the Panthers game, passing four four touchdowns and zero interceptions on 21-of-27 completions, while finishing with 280 passing yards. That’s a much-needed confidence builder for Lock, heading into a tough matchup against the Bills’ defense. But the Broncos’ defense will have to do their part in keeping Denver in step with Buffalo. Denver’s pass rush will look to duplicate their performance in the Carolina game in which the Broncos sacked Teddy Bridgewater four times. On the season, the Broncos are ninth with 36 sacks.
The Broncos are 6-4 against the spread in their last 10 home games.
