Is Run-Heavy Formula Key to Super Bowl Run for Denver Broncos?

The Denver Broncos have unveiled a new formula for their offense over the last two weeks. They are running the ball more than ever with second-year running back C.J. Anderson as the starter.

Since Week 10, Anderson is leading the NFL in rushing with 454 yards. He has a four-game streak of compiling at least 100 all-purpose yards in each game.

In Week 11 against the St. Louis Rams, the Broncos essentially forgot to run the football and Anderson finished the game with only nine carries. The result was a disappointing 22-7 loss to the Rams. That contest wrapped up a three-game road trip in which the Broncos went 1-2.

During that road trip, the Broncos averaged 18 carries for 63 rushing yards per game. Peyton Manning averaged 52 passing attempts during this time, and the Broncos were one-dimensional on offense.

Opponent	Att	Rush Yds	Att	Pass Yds	Result
New England Patriots	17	43	57	438	L
Oakland Raiders	27	118	49	353	W
St. Louis Rams	10	28	54	389	L

They’ve more than made up for that in the last two weeks.

Since the Rams game, Denver has averaged a whopping 40 carries per game. As a team, the Broncos are averaging over 200 rushing yards per game during the time.

Opponent	Att	Rush Yds	Att	Pass Yds	Result
Miami Dolphins	35	201	35	257	W
Kansas City Chiefs	45	214	34	179	W

Broncos head coach John Fox is proud of his team’s ability to run the ball.

“You try to create a balance. The reason you do that is with each new opponent, there are different matchups. This game is about matchups. They have strengths and weaknesses too and how that marries up—you try to stay consistent whether it’s defense or offense, stopping the run, running the ball or pass defense.” Fox concluded, “All that stuff goes into every week.”

Fox revealed that each week brings about a different game plan. “These things take on their own new personalities. We will not attack and approach the Buffalo Bills exactly like we did the Kansas City Chiefs. Name two teams, they are all different. Some of that stuff is what gives us the best chance to win or how we match up with our opponent.”

The Broncos have transformed their offense over the last two weeks, but is their run-heavy formula the key to a Super Bowl run? Let’s take a look.

The Remaining Schedule

Gail Burton/Associated Press

The Broncos have four games to go before the tournament called the NFL playoffs begin. They have two games at home and two games on the road to finish out the regular season.

As you can see, the Broncos face three potential playoff teams in the final four games. Each one of these games could have a playoff feel for Denver, and their new formula on offense will certainly be put to the test.

Week	Opponent	Record
14	vs Buffalo Bills	7-5
15	@ San Diego Chargers	8-4
16	@ Cincinnati Bengals	8-3-1
17	vs Oakland Raiders	1-11

The first game up, against the Buffalo Bills in Week 14, will provide arguably the toughest challenge. For the season, the Bills rushing defense ranks seventh-best in the league. They only allow an average of 96.3 rushing yards per game.

The Broncos will have a home-field advantage in this contest, but the weather may be cooler in the Mile High City. That could make it tougher for the passing game to launch passes through the air.

The following week, the Broncos travel to play their division rival the San Diego Chargers. They are currently in the middle of the pack of the NFL with the 16th-best run defense. The Chargers allow an average of 110.2 rushing yards per game.

This game is in San Diego, so weather will not be a factor. Sunny skies could lead to a more robust day from Manning and the passing attack.

The final game of note is the Week 16 matchup on the road against the Cincinnati Bengals. That Monday Night Football contest will most certainly have a playoff atmosphere. The Broncos will be facing a defense that has sustained a lot of injuries at the linebacker level. Those injuries have caused the Bengals rush defense to suffer. Currently, the Bengals has the 25th-ranked rush defense and allow an average of 125.1 rushing yards per game.

The Broncos are getting hot at the right time. Staying hot up to and through the playoffs is not a guarantee with this upcoming schedule.

AFC Playoff Picture

Steven Senne/Associated Press

It’s that time of year when we start to look ahead to the playoffs. Now is the time to determine where teams could be possibly seeded for the start of the postseason.

Denver has finished each of the last two years as the No. 1 seed in the AFC. As it stands right now, Denver does not hold that place in the conference, as noted by ESPN's Adam Schefter: 

"

AFC playoff seedings as of now: 1. Patriots; 2. Broncos; 3. Cincinnati; 4. Indianapolis; 5. San Diego; 6. Miami.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 2, 2014 "

There are arguably three powerhouse teams in the AFC. If the playoffs started today, the New England Patriots would be the top seed and have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Broncos would be the second seed, and there would be at least one game at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.

The third powerhouse is the fourth seed right now. The Indianapolis Colts feature one of the best young quarterbacks in the game today in Andrew Luck. That offense and all their firepower make them a dangerous foe. The Colts are one of the few teams who could go toe-to-toe with the Broncos in an offensive shootout.

In Week 13, the Patriots lost to the Green Bay Packers in a hard-fought game. The Packers were able to come out on top in part due to the production they got from running back Eddie Lacy. On 21 carries, Lacy was able to rack up 98 yards rushing against New England.

The Broncos played the Patriots earlier this year, and they were humiliated in Week 8 at Gillette Stadium by a score of 43-21.

In that game, Anderson was the team’s leading rusher with three carries for 18 yards. This was before he took over as the starter. Ronnie Hillman started that game, but he failed to impress as a runner. Hillman finished that game with 10 carries for 16 yards. As a team, the Broncos only rushed 17 times for 43 yards (2.5 yards per carry).

In a rematch with Anderson as the lead back, one would have to assume that we’d see Denver run as much as possible.

Denver beat Indianapolis in Week 1, but they did so with Manning and the passing game. Perhaps in a playoff game, we’d see the Broncos employ a strategy the Patriots used to beat the Colts 42-20 in Week 11.

In that game, Patriots undrafted rookie running back Jonas Gray carried the ball 37 times for 201 yards and an amazing four rushing touchdowns. That’s a game plan the Broncos could use to pound the Colts into submission if they meet in the postseason.

Summary

The Broncos may be a better Super Bowl contender now than they were earlier in the year. Anderson and the newfound ground game gives the team another advantage that they didn’t have last year.

Anderson gives his praise to the offensive line.

“I’m just trying to play at a high level every week. You’ve got to give it to the big boys up front. We’ve just got to keep things going.”

The young running back is right, the Broncos do need to keep this going. A punishing rushing attack can soften up opponents and dominate the time of possession.

Cornerback Chris Harris knows how important winning the time of possession battle is for the Broncos in 2014.

“That time of possession is huge and we don’t want to put the onus on [QB] Peyton [Manning]. It’s a team game, a total team this year, so we want to make his job easier.”

Manning is one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play this game, but he doesn’t need to carry the entire burden of the offense on his shoulders. A powerful rushing attack is a huge help for the offense as a whole. By running the ball effectively, Manning will get better looks when passing the ball.

Simply put, the Broncos are more dangerous now that they are a whole on offense.

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.