49ers vs. Broncos: Breaking Down Denver's Game Plan

The Denver Broncos took care of business on the road last week. In Week 6, the Broncos traveled to play the New York Jets, and they won 31-17 with a balanced attack.

For the first time this year, the Broncos had a 100-yard rusher. Third-year running back Ronnie Hillman started the first game of his pro career, and he responded with 24 carries that went over the century mark.

After striving for balance most of the year (minus the game against the Cardinals), the Broncos finally achieved perfect balance against the Jets. They finished the game on Sunday with 33 passing attempts and 33 rushing attempts.

After beating the Jets, the team now turns its attention to a Sunday night game against the San Francisco 49ers at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.

The 49ers are playing on a short week after they defeated the St. Louis Rams 31-17 on Monday Night Football in Week 6.

On Wednesday, Broncos head coach John Fox commented on what he saw from the 49ers on Monday night. “They’re a good football team. They’re well-coached, they’ve got good talent and they’ve assembled a very good roster. That’s why they’ve been able to win all those games and be in those championship games.” Fox concluded, “So I think it’ll be a very formidable foe, and I think that’s a good reason why we’re playing on Sunday night.”

Colin Kaepernick is one of the toughest quarterbacks to lock down because of his rushing ability. The Broncos may be forced to use a linebacker in order to spy on the athletic quarterback. This takes a player away from coverage, and it could also open things up for the 49ers running backs.

The 49ers run hot and cold at times, but they could arguably be in the mix for the best team in football.

Let’s take a look at how the Denver Broncos will attack the San Francisco 49ers on both sides of the ball.

When the Broncos Run the Ball

Sharon Ellman/Associated Press

Montee Ball is going to be out a while with a groin injury, so we could see Hillman as the starter for a few more weeks. Hillman had a big day against the Jets, but he did cough up the rock once (recovered by Andre Caldwell). He’ll have to do a better job of securing the ball if he doesn’t want Juwan Thompson to cut into his workload.

While Hillman is the fastest back for the Broncos, Thompson brings power to the field. He runs with more determination than Hillman, and the undrafted rookie doesn’t waste motion when he gets the handoff. His no-nonsense running style can be a real asset for the team, especially in short-yardage or goal-line situations.

The 49ers allowed the Rams to almost rush for over 100 yards as a team on Monday night (24 carries, 93 yards). Two weeks ago, the Kansas City Chiefs did pass the century mark against the 49ers (20 carries, 107 yards).

Their defense is currently ranked fifth in the NFL, and they only allow an average of 79.8 rushing yards per game. The 49ers are tough to run against, but we’ve seen more breakdowns in recent weeks.

San Francisco might be missing a key defender in linebacker Patrick Willis. He sprained his toe against the Rams, and he seems unlikely to play in Week 7. That is a huge gut punch for the 49ers defense, who is already missing other key defenders.

One way the Broncos have helped jump-start the rushing attack is by the use of a third offensive tackle, as veteran Paul Cornick is lining up as a tight end in certain situations. This gives the team a "jumbo" look, and the move has created larger holes for the running backs.

Tight end Julius Thomas likes how that formation shakes things up for the offense—and the Broncos opponents.

“It kind of gives the defense a different look when you bring in that third tackle. You get a really good run-blocker, a guy that usually would be a tackle and now he’s in the tight end spot, maybe going up against guys that aren’t used to having to go up against tackles that much.” Thomas concluded, “Also, I think it’s just a changeup, give the defense something else to look at instead of always staring at me or me and [TE] Virgil [Green] all the time.”

The Broncos built momentum with their running game last week, and they are hoping to carry that over and continue that trend going forward.

When the Broncos Pass the Ball

Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press

The game script against the 49ers will determine whether or not the Broncos have to air it out on Sunday night. They want a balanced attack, and if their ground game has success, then we could see fewer passes for Peyton Manning this week.

If the 49ers stuff the run, then the Broncos will have no problem turning to Manning. With 506 career touchdown passes, Manning is only three shy of breaking Brett Favre’s all-time record. The veteran quarterback insists that the chase has not been distracting for him.

“I think we’ve concentrated on the important things. We’ve had two good wins coming off a bye week—an early bye week. I think you’re curious how you’re going to respond, especially if you have a little bit of rhythm going and you’re playing decent football and then you have an early bye week. Do you come out sluggish? Do you lose anything that you had? I think we’ve responded well coming off that bye week and have had two good wins playing excellent teams.” Manning emphasized, “So that’s what I’ve concentrated on, trying to do whatever it takes to win and I don’t feel like it’s been a distraction because we’ve handled it and focused on what’s important.”

Julius Thomas is leading the league with nine touchdown catches so far this year. He’s on pace to shatter the record of 17 touchdown catches by a tight end in a single season (Rob Gronkowski, 2011). It won’t be shocking to see Thomas catch at least one touchdown against the 49ers, and perhaps he’ll catch the record-breaking pass.

He knows if he hauls that pass in, he won’t be keeping the ball, which is likely headed for Canton, Ohio. “No, I won’t be the one that keeps 509, if I happen to catch that for him. I’m sure we’ll all have fair game for 510, 511 and so forth.”

Throw in wide receivers like Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders, and the 49ers are going to have their hands full defending the league’s most dangerous passing attack.

The 49ers are tough to throw on, averaging only 207.3 passing yards allowed per game—a mark that ranks second in the NFL. They are good at getting after the quarterback, and they can bring pressure from multiple angles.

Even in this tough matchup, it could be a record-setting day for Manning and company.

When the 49ers Run the Ball

Tony Avelar/Associated Press

The 49ers have a strong ground game built largely on the legs of veteran back Frank Gore. He’s still capable of grinding down an opponent with his punishing style between the tackles. Gore’s running can be the lifeblood for this offense. Now, when Gore needs a break, the team has another powerful back they can turn to.

Rookie Carlos Hyde was a second-round pick for the 49ers in the 2014 NFL draft. Like Gore, Hyde runs with power and pop at the point of attack. He doesn’t go down without a fight, and Hyde is difficult to bring down when he builds a head of steam.

Fox knows the 49ers will be tough to slow down on the ground.

“It’s about matchups. I think the dilemma you have with the 49ers is they’ve got a very good offensive line, they’ve got a very good receiving corps, including the tight end, and they’ve got a very good running game. Both backs, [Carlos] Hyde and ‘21’ (Frank Gore) are very good backs and proven. Frank Gore’s been a Pro Bowler. So any time you have the dimensions to be able to both run and pass—a mobile quarterback in Colin Kaepernick—they present problems. So we’ll definitely have our work cut out for us.”

The last two opponents for the Broncos have not rushed for over 70 yards combined (Cardinals: 37 yards; Jets: 31 yards). They will certainly be focused on shutting down the ground game for the 49ers on Sunday night.

Denver’s rush defense only gives up an average of 76.8 yards per game—fourth best in the NFL. It has only allowed five rushing scores so far this year, and the Broncos run defense looks even tougher over the last two weeks.

When the 49ers Pass the Ball

Billy Hurst/Associated Press

The 49ers love to run the football, but there are times when they need to air it out. Kaepernick is not the most accurate passer, and his 64.3 percent completion rate ranks 14th in the NFL. The athletic quarterback can pull the ball down and scramble in the blink of an eye.

What makes him incredibly dangerous is the ability to release the ball from a variety of angles. He has enough arm strength to flick it 40 yards fairly accurately without having his feet properly set. This makes it difficult for defenses that can’t bring him down quickly with pressure.

Fox knows the complications that Kaepernick can create for an opponent.

“Colin’s a very big athletic guy. [He’s] tall, so he’s got good vision down the field. He’s got a very live arm and I’ve seen him make runs that look like running backs. So he’s very, very capable and I think improving all the time. We’re familiar with him.” Fox continued, “He’s a guy that we looked out coming out [of college] that we had in and visited with, so we’re familiar with him and he’s done great things, and we kind of saw that coming.”

When the 49ers weren’t getting it done on the ground against the Rams (Gore and Hyde combined for 52 yards on 27 carries), Kaepernick took over with his arm. On Monday night, he posted 343 yards passing with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He did a good job of spreading the ball around to multiple receivers, and he made difficult throws with pressure in his face.

The Broncos didn’t have much of a challenge last week with Geno Smith. That will be much different this week with Kaepernick.

One of the most difficult weapons to match up with is tight end Vernon Davis. The Broncos will be without weak-side linebacker Danny Trevathan (again) because of (another) fracture to his left leg. They historically struggle against athletic move tight ends, and that weak spot could be accentuated by a player such as Davis.

Denver’s pass defense is ranked 16th in the NFL with an average of 241.4 passing yards allowed per game. It's given up seven passing scores through the air to date. The Broncos have four interceptions, which ranks 16th in the league—plus they’ve generated 15 sacks in 2014 (seventh best in the NFL).

Summary 

The Broncos let the Jets hang around a bit last week before putting them away late. They had better not do this against the 49ers or they’ll get beat.

With Kaepernick on the field, the Broncos have a lot to worry about. The young quarterback is going to be difficult to slow down as a runner—even if the Broncos use a spy on him. Kaepernick has a strong arm to make accurate off-platform throws when under duress. This means the coverage will have to be tight even when the pass-rushers are pressuring the quarterback.

The Broncos have a strong run defense, but they will be tested by power backs like Gore and Hyde.

The 49ers defense is quite banged up right now, and the Broncos offense should be able to take advantage.

All quotes and injury/practice observations obtained firsthand. Record/statistical information provided via email from the Denver Broncos unless otherwise noted. Contract and salary-cap information provided by Spotrac.com. Transaction history provided by ProSportsTransactions.com.