Broncos vs. Patriots: Tight Ends and Protection Will Be Key in New England Win

The Denver Broncos employed a very Bill Belichick-like defensive game plan in their last meeting with the New England Patriots. They keyed in on wide receiver Wes Welker and tight end Rob Gronkowski, universally considered two of New England's best weapons on offense.

Essentially, that game plan was used to take away what is most comfortable for the Patriots. Welker and Gronkowski accounted for a combined 290 targets (47.5 percent of the team total) on the season. Tom Brady took what he was given and tight end Aaron Hernandez piled up nine receptions for 129 yards and a touchdown against the Broncos.

Thus, it was an effective game plan in theory, but not on the field.

It may be even more difficult for the Broncos to employ that game plan on Saturday. According to Jeff Legwold of the Denver Post, Broncos safety Brian Dawkins is expected to miss Saturday's game with a neck injury.

That doesn't exactly bode well for the Broncos secondary, which lacks depth as it is. This could be the final nail in the coffin, with the Patriots fielding more talented pass-catchers than the Broncos will likely be able to cover.

"You never who is going to be heavily involved," said Gronkowski after the Week 15 game, according to Patriots.com.

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"That's what is so great about the game, it takes a team effort every single week. You don't know who is going to be the guy getting the ball every single week. It happened to be him this week. He played great." 

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But even if it's not a huge game on the stat sheet for the tight ends, their presence on the field could dictate the tempo for both the Patriots offense and the Broncos defense.

We all know that Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil are Denver's two best players in the front seven, combining for 21 of the team's 41 sacks this season. As such, Gronkowski may be reserved as a blocker in certain situations to chip one of the pass-rushers, allowing Brady more time in the pocket. 

"They have two very good pass rushers on the outside," said Brady after the win, according to Patriots.com. "They're good with schemes. I thought, for the most part, our protection was very good. I just tried to find good matchups and throw the ball there."

The more time Brady has in the pocket, the more time he has to find the mismatch and make the throw. 

The Broncos can't double-cover everyone; someone will be left alone. Hernandez's big game against the Broncos last time could mean Denver is a bit more wary of that the second time around. They may not be as willing to let Hernandez run free through the secondary, but with the injury to Dawkins, they may not have much of a choice.

As much help as Gronkowski could potentially provide, it will be the play of Nate Solder, Matt Light and Sebastian Vollmer that will predicate whether or not he is used as an extra blocker. According to Pro Football Focus, the three gave up a combined 10 sacks on the season. That's not bad at all considering they were consistently faced with some of the best edge pass-rushers in the game.

And with Vollmer continuing to nurse injuries, Solder could be called upon to provide some extra support. That may not be the worst-case scenario. However, if Vollmer needs some help, Gronkowski could be the one to provide it.

In whatever their role will be, the tight ends will be crucial in getting the Patriots offense going and keeping it moving on Saturday.

Erik Frenz is the co-host of the PatsPropaganda and Frenz podcast. Follow Erik on Twitter.