How the Broncos Can Use Power Run Game to Beat the Chiefs

The Denver Broncos have an important divisional contest on the road in Week 13, and they could really lean on their power run game against the Kansas City Chiefs. This means that second-year running back C.J. Anderson could be in for a big day on Sunday.

After only carrying the ball nine times against the St. Louis Rams in Week 11, Anderson received 27 carries in the Week 12 game against the Miami Dolphins. He responded by rushing for a career-high 167 yards, plus Anderson chipped in with four catches for 28 yards as a receiver out of the backfield.

This was the third game in a row that Anderson had compiled over 100 all-purpose yards, but it was the first time he hit triple digits as a runner. Broncos head coach John Fox had a lot of praise for Anderson’s performance against Miami.

“He’s done a tremendous job all year. It’s a position that we’ve had some injuries in. We’ve rotated guys through there and whoever has gotten their opportunity has responded and C.J. has been no different. He does a good job. he’s pretty shifty, he can make guys miss in the open field, whether it’s in the passing game off short catches or in the run game.” Fox concluded, “That’s kind of a skill set that I think he’s good at.”

Looking at the Chiefs' stats against power backs, it becomes clear what Denver must do.

Wk	Player	Team	Carries	Yards	YPC
1	Shonn Greene	Tennessee Titans	15	71	4.7
2	C.J. Anderson	Denver Broncos	5	31	6.2
4	Stevan Ridley	New England Patriots	5	28	5.6
5	Frank Gore	San Francisco 49ers	18	107	5.9
5	Carlos Hyde	San Francisco 49ers	10	43	4.3
10	Anthony Dixon	Buffalo Bills	9	62	6.9
11	Marshawn Lynch	Seattle Seahawks	24	124	5.2
12	Latavius Murray	Oakland Raiders	4	112	28.0
12	Marcel Reece	Oakland Raiders	8	37	4.6

The Chiefs rank 26th in the NFL, allowing an average of 129.4 rushing yards per game. This mark is well above the league average of 110.9 rushing yards allowed per game. They are dead last in yards per carry allowed (4.96).

Here’s how the Broncos can use a power-rushing attack to win on Sunday.

Set the Tone

The Broncos can use their power backs to set the tone early against the Chiefs. Over the last three games, Denver has failed to score a touchdown in the first quarter. These slow starts have plagued the team recently, and it puts more pressure on the team to score later in the game.

This picture shows an early run by Tennessee Titans running back Shonn Greene. While Greene is not overly talented, he does run with some power and intent. As you can see, Chiefs linebacker Josh Mauga overpursues the play, creating a large cutback lane to Greene’s left:

NFL.com - Game Rewind

The result of the play is an eight-yard gain. The Titans shocked the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in Week 1, and they came out victorious in large part due to Greene and their power-running game.

Softening Up The Defense

A power-rushing attack can help soften up an opponent's defense as the game goes on. It’s important for the Broncos to establish the ground game early so they can better sell play-action fakes and take advantage of a tired defense late in the contest.

This play shows a second-half carry by San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore. As he gets the handoff, Gore can clearly see a cutback lane opening up to his right. Only defensive back Ron Parker stands in the hole—a clear disadvantage for the Chiefs:

NFL.com - Game Rewind

Gore is able to cut back for a seven-yard gain on this play. San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick is not a polished passer, but the Chiefs defense had to respect any play-action fakes because the 49ers ran the ball so well to begin the game.

Any big gains from a running back can drain the will from an opponent. The Chiefs were surprisingly beat by the previously winless Oakland Raiders on Thursday Night Football in Week 12. Kansas City had yet to surrender a single rushing touchdown all year long, but they gave up two rushing scores to second-year back Latavius Murray.

Here we see the formation before Murray takes it to the house for a 90-yard touchdown run. The Chiefs defense is clustered near the line of scrimmage with nine players in the box. Mauga overcommits (again) to the play side, and Murray is able to break into the second and third levels of the defense quickly.

NFL.com - Game Rewind

This play was a backbreaker for the Chiefs defense. The Broncos may not break off any 90-yard touchdown runs, but gashing the Chiefs for 20-plus could dishearten their opponent.

Time of Possession

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The Broncos can control the clock if they control the game with Anderson. The Chiefs are going to try to play “defense” when their offense is on the field. They want to keep Peyton Manning cold on the sidelines while they sustain long drives.

In the Week 2 game against the Broncos, the Chiefs easily won the time-of-possession battle. They held the ball for over 36 minutes, while the Broncos had the ball for just over 23 minutes.

Denver can use some “football kung fu” on the Chiefs and put pressure on them by controlling the clock. With a strong rushing performance, the Broncos could win a tough game on the road.

If the Broncos can win the battle for time of possession, the Chiefs would be less likely to try a similar formula to what happened the first time these two teams played this year.

Picking up short-yardage situations is key to extending drives for the Broncos. After the Dolphins game, Peyton Manning explained how and why the team decided to run the ball on a key 4th-and-2 to extend a fourth-quarter scoring drive.

“Actually, to tell you the truth [offensive coordinator] Adam [Gase] made the change. We got to the line of scrimmage pretty early and we had time on the clock and so Adam actually made the change from the sideline. It was critical.”

Manning continued, “We ran the ball to the left and it was a good thing that we changed it because we really didn’t have a good play based on the look that they were showing early and we did make the change. I think it was what Adam wanted to get to all along. He just took a little longer time to get to it so it looked like an audible and a change. ”

It’s important for the Broncos to set the tone early, but by winning the time-of-possession battle they can control the tone for the entire game.

Summary

The Broncos used Anderson to beat the Dolphins last week. The coaching staff has been talking about striving for balance offensively almost every week this season. Against the Dolphins, the Broncos had 35 passing attempts and 35 rushing attempts.

Now that Anderson has shown what he can do with a full workload as a runner, there’s no need for the Broncos to go away from that formula. In fact, in this important game against the Chiefs, following a similar game plan is imperative.

The Chiefs have suffered multiple injuries on the defensive side of the ball, but they still know how to get after the quarterback. They’ll work hard to harass Manning on each and every dropback.

The Broncos can protect Manning by running the ball effectively. They need to set the tone early, and the Broncos need to keep softening up the Chiefs defense as the game goes on.

By winning the time-of-possession battle, Denver creates the best chance to win this game.

Not only is the power run game important for this week—it’s something they could lean on as they get to (and through) the postseason.

All quotes and injury/practice observations obtained firsthand. Record/statistical information provided via email from the Denver Broncos unless otherwise noted.