Week Three Preview: Saints at Broncos; Clash of the Offensive Juggernauts

In week three, the Denver Broncos will play host to their first NFC opponent of the season:  the New Orleans Saints.

New Orleans has tons of weapons on offense, but some key players will miss the game due to injury.  Marques Colston tore ligaments in his thumb week one, taking away Drew Brees' favorite target.

Replacing Colston as Brees' main man is RB Reggie Bush, who leads the Saints in rushing, receiving, and has two touchdowns on the year.  Bush will likely be the Broncos main target on defense, and Brees may look to star TE Jeremy Shockey for a security blanket.  David Patten also has found new life in the Big Easy, and Devery Henderson is a big-play threat.  Second year receiver Robert Meachem also has big play ability, but has yet to prove it in this league. 

The Saints still have veteran QB Drew Brees, who has not had the best success against the Broncos.  In his final game as a Charger, Brees got hit on a safety that tore ligaments in his knee.  The Chargers lost both games to the Broncos that year, and it marked the end of Brees' career there.

While the Saints boast the tenth rated offense (both in yards and scoring) the Denver Broncos go into the game featuring the top offense in either league.  The Broncos are averaging 40 points per game, and lead the NFL in total yardage.  Jay Cutler has led the offense to the second best passing yardage in the NFL, and the platoon of backs are rated tenth in rushing.

Both teams are struggling to find comfort on the defensive side of the ball, as both teams are in the bottom ten of the NFL in points allowed.  The Saints have given up less points than Denver, but the Broncos have less yardage allowed.

I believe the Broncos will win this one at home, improving their record to 3-0.  The Saints may not be able to keep pace with the Broncos offense, and the Denver defense, while not great statistically, has a lot of playmakers and can force turnovers.

Fantasy Projection

New Orleans

Drew Brees:  21-of-35, 218 yards, TD, 2 INT

Reggie Bush:  13 car, 60 yards, 7 rec, 84 yards, TD, 220 all purpose yards

Jeremy Shockey:  8 rec, 78 yards

Pierre Thomas:  15 car, 45 yards, TD

Martin Gramatica:  1-2, 5 tot pts.

Denver

Jay Cutler:  25-33, 285 yards, 3 TD

Andre Hall:  12 car, 63 yards, TD

Selvin Young:  15 car, 88 yards

Michael Pittman:  10 car, 33 yards, TD

Brandon Marshall:  13 rec, 145 yards, 2 TD

Eddie Royal:  6 rec, 81 yards, TD (30 PR yards)

Tony Scheffler:  4 rec, 65 yards

Matt Prater:  2-2, 11 points total

Final Prediction

Denver 41, New Orleans 17